My First Opera: Hansel and Gretel

The 3rd graders just finished learning about the opera, "Hansel and Gretel" by Engelbert Humperdinck. After reading the story we play this interactive online game to design our own opera where we learn about all of the different jobs and roles involved in putting together a full opera production. Then, we create our own real opera in the classroom.


Each student selects a job from the following: Singers (Hansel, Gretel, Mother, Father, Sandman, Dew Fairy, and Witch), Set Designer, Costume Designer, Librettist/Prompter, Choreographer, Lighting/Effects Technician, Props Manager. All students are also members of the chorus and play the roles of angels and/or gingerbread children.


Costume designers select costumes from my costume cupboard for each of the characters, set designers are given cardboard boxes to decorate (I just happened to have several available from my 1st and 2nd grade program last week), the prop managers must find things in my classroom that can be used for the play, choreographers create dances for each of the songs we will be using, lighting/technical directors use flashlights and found sounds to create special effects, and the librettist takes a copy of the "Hansel and Gretel" storyline and writes singing parts for each character who then sings the lines in his/her own way (one student sang all of her lines to the Peyton Manning "Nationwide" tune!).


At first glance, this project seems a bit overwhelming and disastrous! The hardest part was for me to step back and let the students do all of the work. However, my 3rd graders completely ran away with this project! Each of the students took their job very seriously and some of them even worked on things at home!  I gave them 2 class periods (45 min. each) to work on their given jobs and then we had a dress rehearsal and then our final performance. Students invited family members to both the dress rehearsal and the final performance and we had over 15 audience members at each! It was amazing! My only regret is that I didn't record the performance or take more pictures. Luckily, my principal snapped a few for me!

Father, Gretel, Hansel, and Mother.

Gretel teaching Hansel how to dance in the song "Brother, Come and Dance with Me".

Preparing for Act II.

Taking their final bows!