Anything goes: a case study of

extra-curricular musical participation

in an English secondary school

Stephanie E. Pitts*University of Sheffield, UK

This paper reports on an empirical investigation into secondary school students’ experiences of

participating in a school production of the Cole Porter musical, Anything Goes . The study was

prompted by the absence in the research literature of any qualitative investigation of the extra-

curricular activities that form a vital part of many young people’s musical development. The project

therefore focused on individual motivation and experience, exploring the effects of the school show

not just on its participants, but also on the broader school community. Questionnaires and audio

diaries were used to capture the views of a representative sample of the school population, before

focusing in more detail on the experiences of a smaller number of participants. Results showed a

widespread awareness of the show amongst non-participants, and a general belief that it made a

valuable contribution to school life. Amongst participants, the costs and benefits of participation

were evident in descriptions of the intensity and commitment involved in rehearsals, the effects on

friendship groups of spending time with like-minded people, and the challenges to participants’

own musical, personal and social development.

Setting the scene

The long tradition of extra-curricular music making in British secondary schools has

left generations of former pupils with vivid memories of rehearsals in the school hall,

hastily assembled costumes, the pressure of learning*/and sometimes forget-

ting*/lines and lyrics, and the buzz of performing to an enthusiastic audience of

parents and friends:

Even thinking back to doing Gilbert and Sullivan operas at school*/I can remember

things about those now and everything else that happened that year has gone from the

memory banks; yes, everything about school that year has gone, but I can remember

being a gondolier*/could probably still sing you some of the songs! It was fantastic

[laughs]. It’s true, I think, that it’s the extra�curricular things that stick with most

people, not the curricular day to day stuff. Obviously that has to happen as well, but it’s

nice to provide something extra, really. (Interview with Mrs L, 20 January 2005)

*Department of Music, University of Sheffield, 38 Taptonville Road, Sheffield S10 5BR, UK.

Email: s.e.pitts@sheffield.ac.uk

ISSN 1461-3808 (print)/ISSN 1469-9893 (online)/07/010145-21

# 2007 Taylor & Francis

DOI: 10.1080/14613800601127627

Music Education ResearchVol. 9, No. 1, March 2007, pp. 145�165

When pupils who have been inspired by their experiences of performing at school

grow up to be music teachers, it is understandable that they want to offer their pupils

similar opportunities. Mrs L, quoted above, is Head of Music at a girls’ independent

day school in Sheffield. In September 2004, she embarked on a school production of

Anything Goes , the 1930s musical by Cole Porter, which was performed in a small

city centre theatre in March 2005. Around 110 pupils were involved in singing,

playing, dancing or working backstage, and colleagues from the music, drama, art,

physical education and maths departments formed the staff team who organised and

directed the show.

This article presents the results of a research project, which investigated pupils’

attitudes to and experiences of participation in the Sheffield school production of

Anything Goes. The findings raise broader questions about the value of traditional

extra-curricular performing opportunities, and their place within a changing musical

and educational climate.

Understanding extra-curricular participation

The provision of educational opportunities outside the compulsory curriculum is

well-established in secondary schools, drawing on a public school tradition of high-

profile sport, drama and music activities, sometimes complemented by language

clubs, debating societies and other interest groups. Historically, a focus on school

performance culture preceded the emphasis on making classroom music accessible

and relevant to all, with the post-war generation of teachers drawing instinctively on

their own enjoyment and expertise in music to form choirs and orchestras and direct

them in public performances (Pitts, 2000, p. 52). In later decades, music teachers

have been expected to generate performance opportunities across a wide range of

styles, giving pupils the chance to develop their musical skills and interests, and

contributing to a positive image of the school in providing music for public occasions

(Plummeridge, 1991, p. 112). At times, this can create a tension in the teacher’s role:

As a music teacher working in a secondary school, I found myself playing two roles: one

as a class music teacher and the other as a Kappellmeister . . . The headmaster, the

parents and my colleagues appeared to value my Kappellmeister ’s duties more highly than

the other. Rarely was I asked by anyone about the classwork, yet a concert or carol

service would generate kind comments and congratulations. As the headmaster made an

appropriate speech and shook my hand after a school concert, some awkward thoughts

ran through my head: ‘If you’re so pleased by this event, why don’t you employ me to

mount concerts and make the classwork voluntary? I know why I’m pleased with this

concert, but why are you pleased?’. (Salaman, 1983, p. 1)

Classroom music now has a more widely recognised prominence and purpose than

Salaman’s colleagues apparently perceived, but the expectation that musical learning

will also take place outside the curriculum remains. The ‘kappellmeister’ role still

rings true for some secondary school music teachers, particularly those in more

affluent communities, where a high proportion of pupils learn instruments and seek

146 S. E. Pitts

opportunities to play in orchestras and other ensembles. Where the school

population is more diverse and funding less readily available, musical opportunities

are necessarily different, and national initiatives including Youth Music have done

much to ensure that schools in all socio-economic contexts have access to arts

opportunities beyond the classroom (Gardiner & Peggie, 2003).

Given the time and energy involved in providing extra-curricular opportunities, the

teachers who undertake this additional commitment must be convinced of its value

to their pupils. They receive confirmation of this through anecdotal evidence: the

enthusiasm and commitment of their pupils, the applause of the audience at

performances, their own enjoyment of the process, and (hopefully) encouragement

and recognition from their managers and colleagues. However, the systematic

documenting and investigation of extra-curricular activities is scarce in the research

literature, despite the obvious potential they hold for understanding young people’s

engagement with music and education. Peter Woods’ study of a school production of

Godspell is a rare exception, in which he writes vividly of the power of such a ‘critical

event’ in the life of a school:

Those who took part in Godspell will always remember it. It will figure among the high

peaks of their achievements. In giving people a sight of the ultimate, an indication of

possibilities, some hitherto undreamt of, and new views of themselves, it established a

platform for even greater endeavours. (Woods, 1993, p. 140)

Woods interviewed pupils and staff involved in the production of Godspell to gain

retrospective accounts of its impact on their personal development and music and

drama skills. Pupils spoke of their participation as bringing them maturity,

confidence and emotional development, related in part to their dramatic engagement

with the Gospel story depicted in the musical, but also to their collective pursuit of

the performing goal. Woods writes of the ways in which the group developed through

involvement in rehearsals:

At first they were suspicious and hesitant. They had to shake off the inhibitions, the

defences, the attitudes and protective roles of ordinary school life. They had to enter

into the spirit of it, make a self-investment. Once the bridge had been crossed, and as the

possibilities began to capture imaginations, then [. . .] there was a levelling process as

they came to recognize their common goals and values [. . .] All became totally involved

and committed as they created a life together, making new characters, language, voices,

gestures, developing a culture peculiarly their own. (Woods, 1993, p. 117)

Woods depicts the individual and group experiences of extra-curricular involvement

with unusual depth, whilst acknowledging the limitations of a retrospective study,

and the specificity of one based on a spiritually focused, partly improvised drama.

His is a lone voice amongst a largely quantitative literature on this topic, in which

survey data, often drawn from longitudinal studies based in America, are used to

consider the impact of extra-curricular involvement on pupils’ academic achieve-

ment, engagement with school and long-term employment prospects. Researchers

have consistently demonstrated correlations between extra-curricular participation

Case study of extra-curricular musical participation 147

and success in school, measured both in terms of class test results and pupils’

attitudes towards school work (e.g. Silliker & Quirk, 1997; Cooper et al ., 1999):

‘participation in extracurricular activities*/even those not obviously associated with

academic achievement*/apparently leads to increased commitment to school and

school values, which leads indirectly to increased academic success’ (Marsh, 1992,

p. 560).

Parental support is recognised as a factor in fostering extra-curricular involvement

(Jordan & Nettles, 2000), but excessive parental pressure*/associated particularly

with competitive sport*/can reduce the impact of the activity since ‘children who do

not enjoy their extracurricular activities may also be less likely to reap other

associated benefits, such as skill development and positive peer interaction’

(Anderson et al ., 2003, p. 253). Similarly, while relative affluence increases the

chances of a child’s extracurricular participation, the effects on less advantaged

pupils can be equally beneficial, although Mahoney (2000) notes the possibility that

‘participation in school extracurricular activities is a marker, not a cause, of positive

adjustment for high-risk youth’ (p. 512). And while teachers may be (perhaps

wrongly) suspicious that extracurricular activities can detract from academic work, a

study of teachers’ responses to descriptions of pupils revealed higher expectations of

those who were portrayed as being active outside the curriculum (Van Matre et al .,

2000).

For teenagers, particularly, extra-curricular participation has been shown to have

powerful effects on self-esteem and identity formation, not least in offering

‘alternative domains to achieving school-wide popularity’, which allow previously

marginalized students to ‘feel adequate and successful’ (Kinney, 1993, p. 30). Guest

and Schneider (2003) suggest that these effects are reinforced by the school context:

‘activity-based identities, which are given meaning by school and community value

systems, mediate the relationships between extracurricular participation and its

effects’ (p. 90). The positive effects of participation are therefore dependent in part

on their reinforcement and valuing by significant others, but also rely heavily on the

pupil’s sense of commitment:

Decisions regarding extracurricular participation are made up of a complex synergy of

enjoyment of the activity, feeling competent at the task, being in a socially supportive

environment, perceiving the context as challenging, perceiving more benefits than costs,

and being in an activity that supports identity development. (Fredricks et al ., 2002,

p. 93)

Much research has focused on the benefits of extra-curricular activity for pupils who

are at risk of educational dropout or failure, highlighting this extra dimension of

school life as a possible route to increased engagement, but neglecting to observe its

effects in the full range of socio-economic circumstances. This pattern has continued

with more recent research into arts interventions in economically-deprived commu-

nities, prompted in part by a need to justify the funding of such projects, and also by

the desire to disseminate the often remarkable transformations that can take place as

a result of creative musical encounters in difficult circumstances (Matarasso, 1997;

148 S. E. Pitts

Harland et al ., 2005). There may be an element of inverse snobbery in the tendency

to focus less research energy on investigating the musical experiences of more

privileged school communities, and yet here too there is potential for understanding

more about the effects of musical participation, and for questioning the contribution

that extra-curricular activity might make in an already high-achieving student

population. For teenagers of all backgrounds, extra-curricular activities ‘provide a

major structural context for peer group interactions during adolescence’ (Holland &

Andre, 1987, p. 437), and present the additional challenges and benefits of

renegotiating boundaries and relationships between teachers and pupils (Mahoney

et al ., 2003). In other words, whatever the starting point of the school community,

extra-curricular activity offers an added dimension worthy of research investigation,

and can offer new insight on young people’s attitudes and experiences in relation to

music.

Researching extra-curricular participation: case study methods

As the literature review presented above demonstrates, studies of extra-curricular

activity have tended to emphasize its measurable outcomes, looking for quantitative

effects on pupils’ performance and attitudes in school. The picture thus generated of

extra-curricular involvement is a positive one, but to evaluate such opportunities only

by their apparent impact on academic achievement is in some ways to miss the point.

After all, adults who participate voluntarily in music do so for reasons of enjoyment,

personal fulfilment and pleasure at pursuing shared goals with like-minded people

(Pitts, 2005). They value their musical experiences for their immediate rewards: the

respect and friendship of their fellow performers, the chance to develop both

musically and personally, and the response of the audience to their final

performance. Investigation of these aspects of musical participation is notably absent

from the literature on pupils’ extra-curricular activity, and so this study aimed to

redress that balance, focusing on the individual motivations and experiences of

participants during preparation for the Sheffield school production of Anything Goes.

The research project set out to address the following central questions:

i. What are pupils’ motivations for participating*/or not participating*/in a school

production of this kind?

ii. How do participants experience the social, personal and musical elements of

involvement in the show?

iii. What does a school production contribute to the lives of pupils, teachers and the

broader school community?

The school selected for the research was one of several which had recently taken

students from the university music department on educational placements, and

where an active performing culture had been noted by our students. Learning that

the school had recently begun rehearsals for their production of Anything Goes , I

approached the Head of Music to explain my research interests and seek permission

Case study of extra-curricular musical participation 149

to carry out a study of the pupils’ experiences of participation in the show. The

school is a selective, independent girls’ school located in an affluent area of Sheffield,

and as such had a fairly homogeneous, high-achieving pupil population: an

advantage for the research in limiting the variables which might affect involvement

in the school show, but with the obvious disadvantage of offering a partial picture of

contemporary music education*/a point which would be true of any single-school

case study, and which will be addressed through subsequent studies in a range of

school contexts.

Research methods were devised that aimed to capture the views of a representative

sample of the school population, before focusing in more detail on the experiences of

the participants. After an initial interview and consultation with the Head of Music,

the following methods were implemented:

. A questionnaire was designed to gather responses from participants and non-

participants on their attitudes to music in general, and to the production of

Anything Goes , seeking their reasons for participating (or not) and their views on

the show’s impact on the school community. The questionnaire was distributed by

teachers to tutor groups in Year 7 (aged 11�12) and Year 10 (aged 14�15), in

order to capture the views of pupils in their first year at the school (Y7) and those

who were more established and facing the academic demands of GCSE (General

Certificate of Secondary Education) coursework and examinations (Y10).

Variations in opinions according to age, previous musical experience, general

attitudes to music were anticipated, and the questionnaire was designed to explore

these variables as well as to elicit qualitative statements about the school show.

The questionnaires were completed under teacher supervision during registration

periods, ensuring a 100% return rate of those who were present. Completed

questionnaires were received from 15 Year 7 participants [coded 1�15P7 in the

discussion that follows], 95 Year 7 non-participants [coded 1�95N7], 20 Year 10

participants [coded 1�20P10] and 68 Year 10 non-participants [coded 1�68N10].

. To gain greater insight on the experience of individual participants, I used a novel

method of audio diaries, giving five pupils a personal tape recorder and asking

them to record their own thoughts and interview their friends in order to provide

documentary evidence of the show in rehearsal and performance. I could find no

precedent in the research literature for this method, although it was of course

familiar to the pupils from ‘reality’ television, in which audio*/or more commonly,

video*/diaries are used to capture ‘private’ thoughts for the camera. It held the

risk that the pupils would forget to keep a diary (which happened in one case), and

that the equipment would not be returned (which fortunately did not happen), but

the results from the four successfully completed audio diaries [coded D1�4]

proved to be sufficiently interesting and extensive to outweigh these disadvantages

(see below for further discussion and evaluation).

. Finally, observation of rehearsals and performances was used to gain a sense of the

event in which the pupils were participating. I attended some chorus and dance

rehearsals in school several weeks before the show, as well as part of the dress

150 S. E. Pitts

rehearsal in the theatre the day before the performance, and the second of the two

public performances. In addition, my research assistant on the project, Karen

Burland, acted as a participant observer from her position as clarinettist in the pit

orchestra.

Qualitative data arising from this range of methods were analysed for recurring

themes, and used to interpret experiences of the show for the school community as a

whole, and for those who participated. Particular emphasis was placed on individual

experiences of participation, in order to complement the existing, largely quantitative

literature on extra-curricular participation. This emphasis is consistent with the

emerging ‘pupil voice’ literature in music education (cf. Finney & Tymoczko, 2003;

Finney et al ., 2005), which considers how pupils’ perceptions of their learning and

development can influence pedagogy and policy (see also Flutter & Rudduck, 2004).

Responses from the questionnaires were coded thematically to identify the most

prominent ideas in the students’ thinking, and further insight on these themes was

sought through the diary and observation data. In the results and discussion that

follows, the three main research questions will be addressed in turn, drawing on the

overview of attitudes provided by the questionnaire data and the individual

perspectives offered by the audio diaries.

Results and discussion

Motivations for participating (or not) in the school show

Pupils in Years 7 and 10 who completed the questionnaire were asked to indicate the

extent to which they agreed with a given list of possible reasons for their

participation. The list is shown in Table 1, alongside average and most frequent

results on a scale of 1 to 7 (where 1�/‘not much influence on decision to participate’,

and 7�/‘very strong influence on decision to participate’).

The results show a definite similarity across the two year groups: individual

development of skills and the opportunity to perform were seen by participants as

much more important than the company of friends at the audition stage, and

previous involvement was already a strong factor in Year 7, suggesting that the

foundations for musical participation are laid even before pupils start secondary

school. Indeed, all of the Year 7 and Year 10 participants had previous experience of

performing, which between them included primary school plays, pantomimes with a

local amateur operatic group, productions associated with dancing classes, youth

productions at Sheffield’s Crucible and Lyceum Theatres and, for Year 10 pupils,

previous involvement in school shows.

Non-participants were also asked to rate their agreement with a given list of

statements on their reasons for not participating, as follows:

i. I have been in similar shows before and not enjoyed them;

ii. None of my friends were taking part;

iii. I auditioned for the show but didn’t get in;

Case study of extra-curricular musical participation 151

iv. I needed to concentrate on other school work;

v. I was nervous about the idea of performing on stage;

vi. Other (please give details).

The given reasons were consistently rated low on the scale of 1 to 7, suggesting that

they did not adequately capture the motivations of the non-participants, and

confirming, incidentally, that the pupils were keen to give genuine answers rather

than selecting from those already given. The results presented in Table 2, therefore,

are the ‘other’ reasons offered by respondents, categorised by themes that show some

distinctive perspectives across the year groups.

The most striking finding here is the 31 Year 7s who stated that they had not

known about the auditions, revealing a high level of latent interest amongst the year

group. While one admitted that she ‘didn’t look at the noticeboard telling us about

auditions’ [49N7], others seemed to be even less aware of school systems of

communication, and expressed regret at having missed the opportunity to audition.

Year 7s were also more likely to be keeping the option of future involvement open by

planning to ‘have a go next year’ [27N7], perhaps because of the suspicion expressed

Table 1. Reasons for participating

Y7 participant results Y10 participant results

I have been in similar shows Average�/5.93 Average�/5.9

before and enjoyed them Mode�/6 Mode�/7

Range�/3�7 Range�/2�7

A friend was auditioning so I Average�/2.2 Average�/2.53

thought I’d go along too Mode�/2 Mode�/1 & 2

Range�/1�7 Range�/1�6

I wanted the opportunity to Average�/5.8 Average�/5.6

perform on stage Mode�/7 Mode�/7

Range�/4�7 Range�/4�7

I wanted to develop my Average�/4.47 Average�/4.47

musical skills Mode�/4 Mode�/4, 5 & 6

Range�/1�7 Range�/1�6

Other reasons (please give Mrs L [2P7] Fun [6P10]

details) I really enjoy performing,

singing and acting [7P7]

I am dancing, so I enjoy

it [8P10]

I love acting [8P7] Got asked to [17P10]

I am dancing so I want to

develop dancing skills [11P7]

I love the stage and do not get

nervous when doing anything

[14P7]

1�15P7, 15 Year 7 participants; 1�95N7, 95 Year 7 non-participants; 1�20P10, 20 Year 10

participants; 1�68N10, 68 Year 10 non-participants.

152 S. E. Pitts

Table 2. Non-participants’ ‘other’ reasons for not participating

Theme Year 7 non-participants Year 10 non-participants

Missed auditions 31 responses, including: 2 responses, including:

I didn’t know about the

auditions or the show in

time [3N7]

Didn’t hear about it [35N10]

I missed my audition and

the teachers wouldn’t let

me have another one. I

was really upset [90N7]

Lack of time; other 8 responses, including: 3 responses, including:

commitments I am in a dancing show at

the Rotherham Civic

Theatre, so there was no

time [4N7]

Rehearsals collide with

cathedral choir practices

[37N10]

I would not be able to make

all the rehearsals so would

not know what was

happening [29N7]

Lack of interest 7 responses, including: 7 responses, including:

I don’t like singing, dancing

or drama [5N7]

Don’t enjoy singing and act-

ing

[2N10]

I don’t like performing [6N7] I don’t like those kinds of

shows*/I’m not interested in

them [24N10]

I don’t act [46N10]

Not interested in acting or

singing in public [47N10]

Lack of skill 4 responses, including: 5 responses, including:

My weak point is drama

and dance [2N7]

Can’t sing or act [3N10]

I am rubbish at singing! I

didn’t think the Y7s would

have a chance getting in to

the show [86N7]

I’m not a good actress

[48N10]

Lack of confidence 4 responses, including: 0 responses

I’m scared of singing in

front of an audience [40N7]

I didn’t think I could act

out the character in the right

way [53N7]

Not the right moment 3 responses, including: 0 responses

I thought I would have a

go next year [27N7]

It was a new school and

I didn’t know it too well

[45N7]

Case study of extra-curricular musical participation 153

by two pupils that ‘being in year 7 probably meant I would get a small part’ [87N7].

Despite the obvious potential of the show to make a new cohort feel part of the

school community, some of these younger pupils had clearly felt intimidated or

uninformed in making their decision not to participate.

Amongst the Year 10 non-participants, lack of interest and skill was at similar

levels to the Year 7s, but was expressed more unequivocally: ‘I am not an actress’

[64N10] and ‘I don’t like those kind of shows, I am not interested in them’ [24N10].

For the older teenagers, these aspects of their identities appeared to be firmly fixed,

and they felt less compulsion to justify their non-involvement by reference to other

commitments or lack of confidence. Of the 68 Year 10 non-participants, nine were

doing GCSE music and 43 played instruments (including, in one slightly confused

case, ‘piano, tennis, triangle’ [67N10]). General levels of interest in music were

therefore relatively high, and non-participation in the show was not necessarily

indicative of an overall withdrawal from musical activity.

In summary, the data show that in making the decision to participate or not, pupils

in the different year groups placed slightly different emphasis on the perceived costs

and benefits of involvement in Anything Goes. Year 7s were more likely to find the

idea of participation appealing, and to feel they had missed out if they had failed to

either arrange or get through an audition. Year 10s were less apologetic in expressing

lack of interest in the show, and more decisive in declaring a self-perceived lack of

skill, so presenting themselves as resistant to attempts to persuade them to

participate. Where pupils in either year did participate, their primary motivation

was for their own development as performers and the opportunity to be on stage,

Table 2 (Continued )

Theme Year 7 non-participants Year 10 non-participants

Unsuccessful audition 2 responses, including: 1 response:

Wasn’t good at doing American

accent and not very good as a

singer [8N7]

Rejected from play because

apparently my voice wasn’t

strong enough! [38N10]

Disliked choice of 2 responses: 0 responses

show I’d rather do a play than a

musical [17N7]

It sounds quite boring*/I might

have been in it if it was

something I knew. Also

I can’t sing [26N7]

Travel problems 1 response: 3 responses, including:

I live in Chesterfield so I

couldn’t go to rehearsals after

school [48N7]

I live far away in Worksop,

therefore it would be difficult

for me to go to rehearsals

after school [5N10]

1�15P7, 15 Year 7 participants; 1�95N7, 95 Year 7 non-participants; 1�20P10, 20 Year 10

participants; 1�68N10, 68 Year 10 non-participants.

154 S. E. Pitts

with the importance of friendship emerging later in the rehearsal process (see below)

rather than being critical at the audition stage.

Experiences of participating: social, musical and personal development

Participants in Anything Goes were asked directly in the questionnaire about what

they had ‘learned or gained from being in the show*/musically, personally and

generally’, and were also asked to suggest ‘what people who choose not to participate

miss out on’. The responses from Y7 and Y10 participants reflected their different

roles in the production: Year 7s, most of whom were chorus members, were most

likely to mention specific musical skills*/‘Learnt to sing second part with first on top’

[3P7]*/and to have engaged in some self-evaluation as a result of their participation,

with their conclusions ranging from ‘I’m not as good as I think I am’ [2P7] to ‘I am

better at singing than I thought’ [8P7]. Of the Year 10s, who were more likely to have

solo roles, some mentioned ‘singing in different accents’ [17P10] as a learning

experience, while others emphasised their gains in ‘organisational skills’ [2P10] or

‘confidence’ [6P10] and above all, ‘Fun and get[ting] to know other people’ [11P10].

And the influence of the teachers’ instructions in rehearsal was evident in the Y7

respondent who wrote ‘SMILE! I now know I must always smile’ [13P7].

Participants’ reflections on what their non-participating peers had missed out on

focused overwhelmingly on ‘fun’, a word used in almost half the responses and

elaborated upon as follows:

Being involved in a brilliant performance and having fun!! [1P7]

Being on stage, making new friends and having lots of LAUGHTER and FUN. [14P7]

Fun within a non-formal school environment. [15P10]

These responses show a clear sense of straightforward enjoyment, and of musical

development and opportunities taking place in an atmosphere of friendship and

sociability. Of course, there are costs too in the substantial commitment required of

participants, but when prompted to comment on the disadvantages of participation,

respondents were most likely to mention the difficulties of prioritising the show over

other activities, while dissatisfaction with the rehearsal process itself rarely surfaced

in the questionnaire data.

Vivid illustrations of this widespread sense of fun and involvement*/and further

insight on the less attractive features of participation*/emerged from the audio

diaries which, through the efforts of the four diarists recording their own thoughts

and acting as interviewers, gave access to the views of 42 members of the cast, band

and backstage crew. The diaries offered more immediate and focused reflection on

particular aspects of involvement, such as these discussions at a rehearsal 5 days

before the first performance, about the effects of wearing a costume:

Case study of extra-curricular musical participation 155

I really like it behind the stage, I think it’s really exciting and now that I’ve got my

costume I’m more confident about the production. Like today in rehearsal I sang much

louder because I had my costume on [laughs]. [D1]

I’m wearing like this flowery dress, it’s a bit floaty, and then a black feather boa and a

feathery bag what’s my mum’s, and then some shoes, obviously, and a hat what’s

horrible from a charity shop. [D1]

These comments from different cast members at the first dress rehearsal show the

excitement and novelty of dressing up on stage, and the diary data as a whole

captured participants’ nervous energy as the production moved into the theatre

where the performances were to take place. Diarist 1 was in the band, and while her

own experiences of participation were therefore more closely focused on the

technical challenges of ‘the day long rehearsals [being] really hard on my lips as a

trumpet player’, she too felt the anticipation of the first performance: ‘I’m a bit

nervous about my little solo bit [. . .] because there’s one bit of it that I can’t always

get right, so hopefully tonight it’ll go okay, if I have a bit of adrenalin and stuff*/yeah,

I’m quite excited’.

The cast member in her horrible hat and the trumpeter concerned about her

stamina had quite different perspectives on the production, but shared the sense of

involvement in something that was greater than their individual contribution. For

some participants, this was a source of satisfaction that came mainly from the final

performances: those with small or group roles to play, such as the Year 7 chorus

members, were generally less engaged in the rehearsals, as this discussion from

Diary 2 illustr ates:

Will you be relieved when the rehearsals are over?

Yes, I don’t really like them and I’ll be glad to have more free time for myself.

Ok, and are you excited about the show?

I am very excited because I like dressing up and I like erm, I like, like the being on stage

and everything. [D2]

These Year 7 girls are at the same time resentful of rehearsals and excited by the

prospect of performance, showing that engagement with the process of musical

participation emerges quite late in the rehearsal sequence for those who feel

themselves to be only marginally involved. Being a member of the chorus could

be understood as offering limited opportunities for creativity and individuality, with

pupils relying instead on the delayed gratification of the performance itself to gain full

enjoyment from their experience. With decisions about the production largely in the

hands of teachers and older pupils, the Year 7s complained at times of the ‘long hours

of rehearsals which don’t really involve chorus’ [4P7]. This attitude, though

understandable, was a source of frustration for the third diarist, a Year 13 student

with responsibility for choreographing parts of the show. Her diary included frequent

references to absenteeism in rehearsals, and expressions of empathy with the music

156 S. E. Pitts

and drama staff who were also becoming frustrated with some cast members’ lack of

commitment. At one point in the diary, she offered a reminder*/as much to herself,

perhaps, as for the record*/of the enjoyment that she was nevertheless gaining from

her role:

It seems as though we’re annoyed throughout this whole production, but there is some

enjoyment, well there is a lot of enjoyment to it actually, [. . .] but we just wish people

would put a bit more effort into turning up [. . .] I sort of wish I was acting because it’s so

much hassle to get ten other people more motivated [. . .] so actually I’ve taken on a

harder job, but it is a really good experience [. . .] especially because I’m wanting to go

into dance teaching, so it’s given me a good insight into how to react when people, I

don’t know, give excuses or how to teach people, or how to make them motivated, so it’s

an interesting experience for me. [D3]

Moments like these point to the complexity of emotions and experiences associated

with participation in the show, with an almost inevitable low point in the last stages of

rehearsing being counteracted by the buzz of the final performances. Recalling that

the questionnaire responses reported very low levels of dissatisfaction with

rehearsals, it is clear that most participants found the benefits of their involvement

to far outweigh the costs, but the diaries illustrate that these costs are nevertheless

keenly felt at the time.

One source of enjoyment sustaining participants through the rehearsal process was

the strong community spirit evident in their comments, with friendships being easily

forged and developed: ‘you can just talk to anyone because you’ve got that one thing

in common and like, erm, you just realise that quite a lot of people are really nice’

[D1]. The questionnaires showed participants also feeling that they had established

better relationships with the teachers involved, and in this disarmingly direct audio

diary extract, a chorus member shows understanding for the teachers’ difficult task of

bringing everything together:

Do you think [the teacher] is shouting at you just because she’s stressed or because she really is

annoyed and thinks you’re useless?

I think it’s cos she’s stressed. She has got a stressful look on her face. [D2]

Diarist 4 provided an ongoing commentary on the teachers’ apparent stress levels

and satisfaction with the rehearsals and performance, noting the ways in which their

attitudes affected those of the cast:

Mrs L’s still really happy and chirpy about it all, she thinks it’s all going to come together

perfectly at the end, whereas Mrs H I think is getting a bit more worried*/she started

shouting at some of the passengers [chorus] tonight [. . .] I’m a bit worried that it’s not

going to get there, so I think everyone’s a bit nervous, but no-one’s really putting in a lot

of effort; I mean we’re all going away from rehearsals thinking that we should do loads

but not actually doing any, so it should be interesting. [D4]

Comments from the diarists and those they interviewed confirmed that the pupils

were sensitive to the demands that the show placed on their teachers, and on several

Case study of extra-curricular musical participation 157

occasions they chose not to interview Mrs L or Mrs H, noting that ‘she really doesn’t

need people coming to talk to her at this very moment’ [D4]. This empathy with the

teacher’s role was welcomed by Mrs L, who valued the involvement of Year 13

students in the organisation of the show:

We’re having production meetings every week at the moment and there are a lot of sixth

formers coming to those meetings who’re involved on the production side*/stage

managers, props and scenery people*/that sort of thing, and that’s the only time I can

remember in this school that I’ve seen pupils and staff work on first name terms, which

is fantastic, really. I mean, the staff are used to it but for the older girls to be speaking to

us on first name terms puts a different spin on our working relationships which is very

interesting. There is a great deal of mutual respect going on.

Diary 3, that of the Year 13 choreographer, showed that this informality may not

have been so apparent to the students: statements such as ‘we’ll just have to wait and

see what Mrs H thinks of it tonight’ [D3] reveal a habitual deference to staff’s

opinions, as well as the continued use of surnames and titles. Nonetheless, Diarist 3

related her own feelings to those of the teachers, noting their moments of frustration

with absenteeism in rehearsals and pleasure when sections of the performance come

together for the first time. Different relationships were certainly established between

participants and staff, not least as a result of the amount of time they spent together

on their collective project, but the extent of their development was inevitably bound

by the conventions and hierarchies of school life.

The impact of the show on the school community

While the effects of the school show on participants may be clear enough,

questioning the broader impact of such an event on the school community requires

further investigation. When roughly a fifth of the student population are involved in

the show, what are the consequences for those who are not participating? In order to

explore the possible implications for friendship groups and the attitudes of other

teachers, as well as potential feelings of being ‘left out’, non-participants were asked

the following: ‘If you are not taking part in the show, please write a few sentences

here about what you think of the show in general. (Is it a good thing to have in school?

Will you be going to watch it?)’. The prompts given elicited some near-identical

answers*/‘I think it is good to have shows in school so I will go and watch it’

[10N7]*/but many of the pupils elaborated on these views and revealed some

widespread preconceptions about the show, summarised thematically in Table 3.

As in previous sections of the questionnaire, the greater number of responses from

the Year 7s reflects their tendency to give fuller justifications for their answers, rather

than stating their opinion unequivocally as was the Year 10 style. Nonetheless, some

interesting differences between year groups are revealed, with the Y7s more likely to

make positive mention of the performing opportunities offered by the show, while the

Y10s were more critical, believing that ‘the same people always get the parts’ [6N10].

Both year groups saw the show as a chance to demonstrate existing skills rather than

158 S. E. Pitts

Table 3. Non-participants’ views of the show

Theme Y7 non-participants Y10 non-participants

Provides performing 39 responses, including: 13 responses, including:

opportunities It is good for people who

want to perform [6N7]

It improves musical awareness

and it will be a great result after

all the hard work, which has

been put in! [2N10]

It is good for the people who

got a part because it builds up

their confidence, so they

won’t be nervous for shows

in the future [24N7]

Is good for people to show off

their talents and acting skills

[47N10]

I know that a lot of people like

performing and it is good that

they have the choice of being

in it [34N7]

Generates friendships and 15 responses, including: 1 response:

social opportunities It is also fun, and new

friends can be made [4N7]

It encourages people to

socialise and meet and work

with new people [34N10]

Students can get to know

each other, and it is also a lot

of fun [27N7]

It brings people together,

that don’t normally work

together [41N7]

Good for school 7 responses, including: 7 responses, including:

community It is good for school spirit as

the school can support the

people who are taking part

[19N7]

It shows how many talented

people there are in school

[5N10]

All good schools are involved

in musical shows [40N7]

All girls can participate and it is

good for school spirit [12N10]

It’s important to have shows

and music in school because it

brings people together and

sets everything alive [53N7]

It promotes the school and

gives it a good image [16N10]

It’s nice to make a big

production and make it one

of the most

important times of the

school year [64N7]

It gets the whole school

together having fun and

working together [48N10]

It gives people a chance to

get to know people older

than you and younger than

you [72N7]

Case study of extra-curricular musical participation 159

to acquire new ones: ‘Some people can use their talent in it (or show it off or take

advantage of it)’ [31N7]. Some of the Y7s anticipated their own future involvement

in giving their endorsement to the show*/‘I think it is very good that our school is

able to do something like this and I wish that I was in it’ [57N7]*/whereas the Y10s

seemed to feel more permanently distanced from the event, in some cases expressing

disdain for the choice of musical: ‘The plot is terrible, and the music isn’t that good’

[38N10]. For the Y10s, of course, attitudes towards the show were shaped in part by

past knowledge of similar music and drama events, and perhaps even by previous

experiences of the unsuccessful auditioning or lack of knowledge of the show

reported by the Y7s. These findings are a reminder of the need to make music

accessible to all, and highlight the potentially negative consequences of focusing the

school’s energy on a musical event which, by its very nature, must exclude more

pupils than it includes.

Despite some individual feelings of exclusion, the benefits of the show for ‘school

spirit’, both for members of the school community and as a desirable aspect of its

public image, were mentioned by several respondents in each year group. Similarly,

views of the show as a potential source of friendship and social opportunities were

prominent in Year 7 thinking. Newly arrived at the school, these students were

perhaps more aware of the need to integrate themselves and find like-minded friends;

aspects of school life in which the Y10s were likely to feel already more secure. One

Y7 remarked that ‘because I am not in it I get not much time with my friends because

of rehearsals’ [42N7], suggesting that she had been separated from a recently-formed

friendship group by her decision not to audition. This distancing effect was

sometimes reinforced by the behaviour of participants, as ‘some people can show

off that they’re in it’ [33N7], or by the experience of not knowing anyone who was

involved: ‘I will not be going to watch it because I don’t know anyone in it’ [28N10].

One Y10 went so far as to say that ‘it’s only a good thing for the people who are really

good at music, dance etc., everyone else forgets about it and doesn’t care’ [24N10], a

view which Mrs L had anticipated when she suggested that distributing ques-

tionnaires throughout Year 13 would be unproductive: ‘Some of them are so totally

Table 3 (Continued )

Theme Y7 non-participants Y10 non-participants

Enjoyable to watch 7 responses, including: 4 responses, including:

It sounds really funny and

interesting and I can’t wait

to see it [52N7]

I have seen bits of the show and

will be going to watch my

friends in it [60N10]

It may encourage other

people to take part and

participate in future shows

[71N7]

1�15P7, 15 Year 7 participants; 1�95N7, 95 Year 7 non-participants; 1�20P10, 20 Year 10

participants; 1�68N10, 68 Year 10 non-participants.

Table 3 (Continued)

160 S. E. Pitts

absorbed in their academic studies*/they won’t even be aware that the production’s

going on’. Amongst the Year 7s and Year 10s surveyed, it seems that there was a high

level of awareness of the show, and while some felt a degree of resentment at not

being involved, there was widespread support for its provision of opportunities for

performing and its contribution to school life.

Because the participants were not asked so directly about the impact of the show

on the broader school community, their mention of such effects was rare, but did

include reference to struggling to keep in contact with non-participating friends:

We gave [the dancers] a break, even though we’ve got loads to do, we gave them a break

at lunch today because they were complaining that they’d not seen their friends for

literally about four weeks, because we’ve been rehearsing every single lunchtime [. . .] I

hope it all goes well, but I really enjoyed the break today. I saw my friends at lunchtime

and I’ve missed loads of conversations with them, so I felt a bit out of it really, but they

understand why we’re so busy, so. It’s just amazing how much time it takes up, with your

other friends who aren’t involved with it, we’ve actually missed being with them and

things like that, so. [D3]

Neglecting non-participant friends was a concern expressed by around a third of

participants, and one Y10 felt a stronger distancing effect, saying ‘My friends tease

me’ [13P10]. However, since there was almost unanimous agreement that valuable

friendships had been forged within the show, the social benefits of participation

appeared to outweigh the costs. Comparable results were elicited from questions

about the effects of the show on relationships with teachers: many felt that they had

come to know the music and drama teachers better, while few perceived any

differences in their interactions with non-participant teachers, suggesting a general

tolerance (either real or imagined) amongst the staff for the neglect of homework

mentioned elsewhere in the questionnaires as being a consequence of attending many

hours of rehearsals. One diarist had observed ‘how loads of Year 13s walk around

with books and try to write down notes and things, doing homework between scenes’

[D4], illustrating the difficulties for older pupils in particular of balancing academic

demands and commitment to the show.

For the staff involved in the production, the impact on their workload was self-

evidently enormous: Mrs L spoke to me after one rehearsal about the difficulties of

keeping up with examination entries, coursework and the other demands of her Head

of Music role, saying ‘I just hope I don’t forget things that will change someone’s

life’. However, having stated in her initial interview that the central purpose of the

school show was ‘purely to have a really, really good time and work together’, she

shared this sense of exhilaration and enjoyment with the diarist who interviewed her

just before the second performance:

Last night was wonderful because they could actually hear the audience laughing and I

think that for the first time it really dawned on the girls that this was a comedy. And how

they responded . . . they were waiting for the laughs, they were riding the laughs, their

timing was fantastic and I think that’s what made the difference . . . actually having 400

people laughing out loud at them. I was sitting in the orchestra pit laughing my head

off*/it was a great experience*/I just had to be careful not to miss my cues. [D3]

Case study of extra-curricular musical participation 161

Mrs L’s view that the audience reaction caused the show to make sense to the

performers ‘for the first time’ reinforces the point that full enjoyment of participa-

tion, which can be readily anticipated by adults with greater experience of similar

shows, is delayed considerably for less experienced pupils. This accounts in part for

the widespread expressions of regret at the show being over, as illustrated in this

diarist’s closing remarks:

It’s the day after the musical today and [. . .] it’s actually quite sad that it’s all over and it’s

like a really big anticlimax after we did it and it went so well [. . .] Everyone I’ve talked to

about it they feel like there’s a bit of a gap in their lives now, like where they were

rehearsing or like just even when you think about the musical in your head, or just worry

about it a little bit, or just you know, spend any time thinking about it, it’s like you don’t

have to any more [. . .] I think, because it was such an adrenalin rush and such a buzz

after we’d done it, it kind of makes everything normal seem even more kind of mundane

and boring today, but erm, yeah, it was worth doing because all the effort we put in

definitely paid off, it was really good experience and I’m quite sad it’s over really. [D1]

For pupils and teachers alike, it would simply not have been possible to sustain the

pace and intensity of rehearsals beyond the 6 months that many of them were

involved. Nonetheless, the view expressed by another diarist that ‘I can’t wait to do it

again and I think I’ll be quite sad when it’s over’ [D2] shows the need for repeated

opportunities to experience the ‘buzz’ of performance, either through similar events,

or through other kinds of musical activities that offer comparable moments of

exhilaration.

Conclusions

This study has illustrated the depth of personal growth, community spirit and

musical development experienced by participants in the Sheffield school production

of Anything Goes. It has revealed the potential of such participation to increase

pupils’ confidence, social networks and sense of belonging, whilst acknowledging the

temporary drawbacks of the effort that a show of this kinds demands and diverts

from other activities. The impact of the production on the wider school community

has been considered, and differences between age groups have revealed increasingly

entrenched attitudes towards non-participation among older pupils. The study offers

insight on the individual experience of musical participation during school years,

complementing the existing quantitative literature on the benefits of extra-curricular

activities by revealing pupils’ own thoughts on the immediate effects of participating,

and illustrating their changing motivations from the audition process to the final

performances and their aftermath.

The research methods used here focused deliberately on pupils’ experiences of and

reactions to participation, prioritising the ‘pupil voice’ in an area that has previously

neglected this perspective. In seeking this ‘insider’ view, the audio diaries were

notably successful in giving the pupils the freedom to ask questions of themselves and

their co-performers which seemed pertinent to them, and which captured the day by

162 S. E. Pitts

day changes in attitude, energy levels and enjoyment as rehearsals progressed. This

method has the disadvantage of relying very heavily on pupils’ willingness and sense

of responsibility in carrying out their task: while these were high-achieving, articulate

pupils who seemed to relish their role, the method might need adapting for more

diverse or less privileged school communities. The questionnaires, too, had benefits

and drawbacks: their administration in school tutorial periods offered a reliable way

of surveying a large proportion of the school population, but could have encouraged

a classroom mentality of aiming for ‘right answers’ in their completion. The

questionnaire data were necessarily at an overview level, and on their own would

have been insufficiently sensitive and detailed to gain a complete understanding of

participants’ and non-participants’ views and experiences. However, the triangula-

tion of these two methods alongside observations of rehearsals and performances

provided a rich picture of the show’s development, and has potentially wide

applicability for studying musical life and events in other educational settings.

The participants in Anything Goes have been shown to value their involvement

highly, and their experiences overlap to some extent with those of adults in

performing groups, who in an earlier study presented their musical involvement as

a source of confirmation and confidence, a means of acquiring or demonstrating

musical skills, an opportunity to perform with others and a forum for social

interactions and friendships (Pitts, 2005, p. 10). While adult participants are more

obviously responsible for the management and sustainability of their performing

societies, the pupils’ participation was framed within school boundaries, and as such

their opinions on the choice of repertoire and the need to attract and communicate

with an audience played only a small part in their experience, and perhaps accounted

for a limited sense of involvement amongst chorus members in the later stages of

rehearsals. Nonetheless, the students’ accounts of their involvement showed maturity

and commitment, and highlighted the potential for their school musical participation

to be continued into adult life.

The type of musical activity investigated here occupies an increasingly contested

middle ground between classroom teaching and the informal or self-directed

learning, which has been the subject of much recent research (Folkestad, 2006).

In her investigations of how popular musicians learn, Lucy Green suggests that

‘young musicians who acquire their skills and knowledge more through informal

learning practices than through formal education may be more likely to continue

playing music, alone or with others, for enjoyment in later life’ (Green, 2002, p. 56).

The converse hypothesis might be that involvement in a teacher-directed event like

Anything Goes could stifle pupils’ future performing, by making them dependent on

the provision of similar opportunities by other people. Mrs L’s own experience of

using her own experience of school performing to motivate her teaching shows that

this need not necessarily be the case, but it is certainly true that sharing responsibility

for aspects of the production*/as with the Y13 choreographer*/has potentially long-

term benefits as well as offering valuable peer role models for other pupils, and is a

strategy that could be further developed in activities of this kind.

Case study of extra-curricular musical participation 163

Further research is needed to evaluate the impact of school-age participation*/and

non-participation*/on adult attitudes to music-making, either through retrospective

accounts or by tracking the musical progress of a cohort of school-age participants.

Initial investigations suggest that voluntary, intense musical experiences in the school

years have a powerful and lasting impact: audience members at a chamber music

festival looked back on strong memories of school performances with a mixture of

gratitude at the opportunities they had been given and regret that they had not

pursued them further (Pitts, 2005, p. 122). There is a need for the significance of

extra-curricular participation to be recognised more widely, not just for its

measurable effects on academic performance and engagement, but also for its

immediate, musical benefits for those involved.

Acknowledgements

I would like to express sincere thanks to the cast of Anything Goes for their co-

operation in this research, and in particular to Mrs L for her support of the project.

Thanks too to Karen Burland and Susan Pennington for their transcribing of audio

diaries and questionnaires.

Notes on contributor

Stephanie Pitts is a senior lecturer in music at the University of Sheffield, where she

directs the distance learning MA in Psychology for Musicians. She has research

interests in music education and the social psychology of music, and is co-editor

of the British Journal of Music Education . She has published on topics including

the historical development of secondary school music in the UK, children’s

learning of musical instruments, and music students’ experiences of the

transition from school to university. Her recent book, Valuing Musical

Participation (Ashgate, 2005), analyses the experiences of adults involved in

music-making as audience members, performers and composers.

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