Bringing Back the Musical Theater Ensemble Elective Class

LEESBURG, VA: With students and counselors choosing electives for next year, many theatre students at Tuscarora High School have started marketing the Musical Theatre Ensemble (MTE) elective.

“It’s this class where you can learn the history of theatre in general, but then also go into technique about singing and acting while singing, and blocking while singing,” junior Ava Peach, said.

With the chance to explore musical theatre, both chorus and theatre students have decided to try and take the class next year. As long as you have taken one of the classes, MTE could be on your schedule next year.

“I love theatre, I love chorus, and MTE is theatre plus chorus so win, win, right?” sophomore Alyce Snead stated.

Though MTE was not a class offered this year, there are students who have taken it the year prior. These same students speak very highly of the class and are excited to take it again next year.
“It was really fun,” sophomore MacArthur Maryn said, “It was a pretty laid back class. We still had some grades. All the projects and activities are really fun. It is really a focus-on-yourself class to improve your character and to improve your technique.”

The class will be taught by Mr. Justin Daniel, who also teaches the classes, Theatre 1, Theatre 2/3/4, Duel Enrollment Theatre, and Technical Theatre. He is also the director of this year’s spring musical and next year’s fall play.

“Mr. Daniel knows everything about the class and has been teaching it for a long time,” Maryn stated.

Though there are many Fine Arts electives, MTE is a combination of two of those electives, chorus and theatre. So, students without enough electives available, are looking into this class.

“It is theatre and chorus combined, so if you don’t have enough electives for theatre and chorus, it allows you to at least get a little choral education in there while still keeping it down to one elective,” Snead stated.

This class also helps students with their future. It may just sound like some fun class, but it helps build skills and by taking the class, students can gain honors class credits next year.

“MTE will help students develop ensemble thinking and working with others in order to create a cohesive product and I think that is really important so that you will be able to learn to adapt and work with other people,” Peach said.

To ensure the class will happen, enough students have to sign up. Without enough students, like this year, MTE will not be a choice to take.

“Please, please, please, at least consider it because it’s really, really fun, and I promise people will like it!” Peach stated.

To gain more information on the class, students can go to the Mr. Daniel’s classroom, the Blackbox, which is classroom 802. If still interested, students can talk to their counselor and put it on their schedule for next year.