Theatre for Children: A Guide to Writing, Adapting, Directing, and Acting

There is a lot of good, practical information in this book. The author at times tended to lean too heavily on his plays and shows, as other reviewers have noted. Other than that, the information he shared was very useful.

This is really great book to understand the aspects of childrens' theatre that may not be obvious to most. While many think of childrens theatre as (as I like to call it) puppet, marionets and cartoon figures, children can and do appreciate the classics and original theatre with appropriate plot development, reasonable character development, and a number of subplots.This book simple and impressively breaks out a perfect approach to develop childrens theatre. I especially like the sections on writing or adapting to suit the children and youth. It covers most everything you need to set up a theatre if you were interested in starting out or to add a childrens/youth program to an established audult theatre.

This book is about two times the thickness it should be - the majority of the book is personal recounts of shows the author has directed or in which he has had a hand, and it ends up being a constant self-citing. The book imparts some information about theatre for young audiences, and it is indeed informative, but it certainly takes a measured amount of digging.Also, as I was asked to obtain this book as a text book, I was somewhat disappointed that the book is not indexed. But no matter - the book will teach you a thing or two about theatre for young audiences, and it will not cost you an arm and a leg, either.

It met my expectations and the book is in great condition.

I ordered this book to be used as a textbook for a class on children's theatre (adults acting for audiences of children), and have found it to be very helpful from an acting standpoint. It is written by a British children's playwright, and consequently has a few unfamiliar terms, but most are contextually clear. The author writes like he is THE expert on plays for young audiences (which can be slightly annoying), but the useful information is worth it. He looks at every aspect of children's theatre - design, directing, acting, writing/adapting, even producing - which makes it a good all-around book and single source.

David Wood is nothing short of a genius. Having taken a class of Children's Theatre and watched several Children's plays I can say without a doubt that the theories presented in this book hold up to scrutiny. If you want to write a Children's play start by reading this book.

Walter Piston is a composer, but in his music theory textbook, he can bring in samples from the work of other composers. Why, then, can't David Wood bring in samples from the work of other playwrights?Incidentally, don't buy this book if you are interested in theatre for children as actors. This book is about theatre for children as spectators.

This book has some very well thought out examples of how to write children's plays. However, it sometimes gets a little too long and detailed.

This is a very personal, but also a very honest and helpful guide to anyone wanting to work in the specialised medium of children's theatre. If the author's tone seems a little defensive at first, it's no doubt a reaction to years of fighting the prejudice that entertaining children is somehow easier, and less credible as a job, than entertaining adults. Wood punctures this belief in no uncertain terms, and he can certainly back it up. The centrepiece of the book is a terrific explanation of how he wrote The Gingerbread Man, beginning with only a simple title. He also explains how to adapt a classic text for the stage, using his work on Roald Dahl's BFG as an example. At all times, Wood emphasises the needs of the audience. Ignore the children at your peril! As well as the writing side, there is also good advice on acquiring copyright, as well as guidance for actors and directors. Warmly recommended.

My daughter needed this book for her GCSE as her teacher requested, it gave more of an insight into what younger children are looking for. We also had a trip to The Polka Theater, which is a tad of a stretch from North London, however she ejoyed the book and the trip.

This is simply a must-read for anyone creating theatre for young people. I have already recommended this to so many people! It is a really simple and engaging read, which is unusual for guides like these. I would honestly say that, from my experience, there is not a better guide for creating theatre for young people.

Interesting read, even if you are not a playwright. But, if you are, is full of essential tips.

The most inspiring book I own. Buy it if you have any interest in Childrens Theatre.