School of Rock: The Musical – Script

The School of Rock: The Musical is a 2003 rock musical with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, lyrics by Glenn Slater, and a book by Julian Fellowes.

Introduction

School of Rock: The Musical is a Broadway musical based on the 2003 film of the same name. The musical opened on December 6, 2015, at the Winter Garden Theatre. The show features lyrics by Glenn Slater, music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and a book by Julian Fellowes.

The Plot

School of Rock follows Dewey Finn, a failed, wannabe rock star who decides to earn an easy paycheck by posing as a substitute teacher at a prestigious prep school. Completely unprepared to teach, Dewey starts leading his class in a secret after-school rock band. The students are transformed into a guitar-shredding, bass-slapping, mind-blowing rock band, and they eventually stand up to their headmaster and compete in the Battle of the Bands.

The Characters

The Characters
Dewey Finn – a wannabe rock star who takes a job as a substitute teacher at a prestigious prep school.
Ned Schneebly – Dewey’s friend and bandmate, who is struggling to make ends meet as a substitute teacher.
Rosalie Mullins – the strict principal of the prep school where Dewey starts teaching.
Tomika – a talented student who Dewey mentors and helps form a rock band with her classmates.
Zack – another one of Dewey’s students, who is initially uninterested in music but comes around by the end of the story.

The Music

The music of School of Rock – The Musical is by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Glenn Slater and a book by Julian Fellowes. The show is based on the hit movie of the same name, which starred Jack Black and was directed by Richard Linklater.

The musical had its world premiere on Broadway at the Winter Garden Theatre on December 6, 2015, and opened to critical acclaim. The production closed on January 16, 2016, after 156 performances and 33 previews.

The Lyrics

The following is a transcript of the lyrics to “School of Rock: The Musical.”

D Dewey Finn:
All right stop, collaborate and listen
Ice is back with my brand new invention
Something grabs a hold of me tightly
Flow like a harp playing sweetly
I open my eyes, yeah and I’m feeling right
I jump to the sound, put my hands in the air like this
Staying awake is a struggle for me
The coffee’s kickin’, whiskey’s workin’ overtime
And I’m thinkin’ about school, yeah I’m thinkin’ about school
I’m thinkin’ about school, what am I gonna do?
How am I gonna get through this day?

Kitty Softpaws:
Hey Senorita, what’s up? How you been?
Missed you around here, hope you’re doing fine
Been a little crazy since you left town

D Dewey Finn: % Kitty Softpaws: % D Dewey Finn: % (spoken) % D Dewey Finn and Ensemble: % (sung) % Harold and Ensemble: % Mr. Schneebly: Miranda Cosgrove: Rosalie Mullins: Zachary Woodlee Paul Bushnell Julianne Hough Andrew Lloyd Webber Alex Brightman & Sierra Boggess & Company% src=’https://giphy.com/gifs/VxW9mMXh4ZCJq/giphy.gif’ /> (Everyone greets each other as they walk in) Miranda Cosgrove as Summer Hathaway & Spencer Moss as Zack Mooneyham% Zachary Woodlee as Freddy Jones & Andrew Lloyd Webber as Ned Schneebly% Rosalie Mullins Hi everybody! Who’s ready to learn today? Let’s get started, shall we? Summer, why don’t you take us through some of the basics? What do we need to know before we start playing the guitar? First let me show you how to hold your pick. You want to be able to grip it between your thumb and first two fingers like this. Then you can place your middle finger behind the pick for stability…

The Set

DESCRIPTION OF SCENERY: It’s a cold day. Wintertime. The schoolyard is covered in snow, but there are patches of grass and pavement poking through. The school building is old and gray, with boarded-up windows. A chain-link fence surrounds the property. There’s a sign on the fence that says “No Trespassing” and another that says “Beware of Dog.”

At upstage center there is a tree. At downstage center there is a metal garbage can.

SCATTERED AROUND THE PLAYING AREA, THERE ARE:
-a broken broom
-a mop
-a bucket
-a dustpan
-a spray bottle of cleaning solution
-a bag of trash
-a mop bucket
-a stack of newspapers
-an empty soda can
-an empty pizza box

The Costumes

In School of Rock: The Musical, the students wear their everyday clothes for the most part. For the girls, this includes denim skirts, t-shirts, leggings, and Converse sneakers. The guys wear jeans, t-shirts, and hoodies. When they are performing “In The End” at Battle of the Bands, they all wear black.

Formalwear is not required for any of the scenes, but some costumes are provided for certain characters. These include a rental tuxedo for Dewey (played by Jack Black in the movie), a pair of brown corduroy pants and a plaid shirt for Ned (played by Mike White in the movie), and a checkered dress and cardigan sweater for Patty (played by Sarah Silverman in the movie).

The Lighting

The lighting for School of Rock: The Musical is designed to be highly versatile. The show makes use of a variety of different light sources, including traditional theater lights, moving lights, LED lights, and even lasers. This variety allows the designers to create different looks for different scenes, and to change the look of the show as needed.

The Sound

The musical’s score is a perfect storm of classic rock hits and original songs, all conceived to drive the action onstage. The original songs stay true to the style and feel of the classics, while also expanding the emotional range of the show. And the classic hits? They’re some of the most iconic songs in rock history, re-imagined to fit the needs of our story.

The Staging

The Staging
Rock scenes alternate with school scenes. For most of the show, the stage is split in two by a large screen on which images and colors correspond to the action and lyrics of the songs (ex. blue for “Blue”). Some scenes may also be played out in front of the screen on what is called the “apron stage” (the part of the stage that sticks out into the audience).

Downstage right is a section of the instruments and amps for School of Rock. This is where Dewey practices with his students and where they have their band meetings. This area should look like a music classroom that has been taken over by a rock band. Upstage left is Rosalie’s office. It should be simple and sterile, with a desk, chair and file cabinets.

There are two main set pieces: Dewey’s van and Zach’s apartment. Dewey’s van is parked onstage for most of the show and is used as a changing room, bedroom, practice space and green room for the band. Zach’s apartment is located upstage center and is used for several intimate scenes between Zach and Rosalie as well as for some band rehearsals. The set should be able to accommodate a small drum set as well as Zach’s keyboard.