In celebration of the 75th anniversary of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s first collaboration, Oklahoma!, R&H Theatricals and Educational Theatre Association will team up to provide schools the opportunity to bring musical theatre—and the values it instills—to the classroom.

R&H has invited theatres that are presenting the classic American musical from September 1, 2018–December 31, 2019, to give a free license of the organization’s Getting To Know… Oklahoma! educational program to a Title 1 school in their respective community.

The Getting To Know… series adapts classic Rodgers and Hammerstein titles specifically for youth performers, creating a program that aims to establish a connection to the school and community, instill self-esteem and empathy, and problem solve. This culminates in the presentation of a condensed version of the show that run approximately one hour.

In addition to the gifting of the program, limited performance grants will be made available to the schools to offset the costs of the production. EdTA will facilitate the application process for grants on their AcademicWorks site beginning in March 2018.

Tim McDonald, CEO of iTheatrics, says, “We created the Getting To Know… Collection of R&H titles to ensure that kids have the opportunity to participate in theatre regardless of their level of experience. Each Getting To Know title comes with resources designed to help overcome typical boundaries that schools face—from little theatrical experience to limited rehearsal time. We are thrilled to participate in this campaign with R&H to bring this classic American musical to students with limited access to the arts.”

R&H CEO Bill Gaden added, “We are thrilled to be announcing this campaign today to allow theaters to support a Title 1 school in their area through the musical Oklahoma!. We hope that this initiative can expand access to the arts to thousands of students who would otherwise miss out on the joy, collaboration, and inspiration that theater brings."