More than 200 students from Clovis and Central Unified schools were abruptly removed from a Children’s Musical Theaterworks stage performance of Charles Dickens’ classic story of “Oliver Twist” last week after teachers were caught off guard by some of the story’s dark themes.

Clovis Unified spokesperson Kelly Avants cited “violence, alcohol use and thievery” as the reasons that one of its elementary schools left mid-show on Dec. 8. Central Unified spokesperson Gilbert Magallon said depictions of death in the play were a concern.

Both districts said their teachers didn’t feel that it was appropriate for first-grade students to see that content.

But Judy Stene, CMT’s executive director, questioned why the first grade teachers signed up to take their classes to the performance without knowing or vetting the 85-year-old story.

A day after the mid-show walkout, older Central Unified students attended the “Oliver!” stage production. Joining them were schools from Fresno Unified as well as schools from Riverdale, Oakhurst, Coarsegold, Sanger and Selma.

Clovis Unified skipped the performance.

Elementary and middle schoolers from Clovis didn’t attend the following day as planned because a parental guidance rating was not included in the materials CMT provided to the district, so the appropriate permission slips weren’t distributed to families, Avants said.

To Stene, the decision not to allow the middle schoolers to attend and to blame it on the rating put the theater’s reputation in jeopardy.

“We’ve had a good reputation for 22 years,” Stene said. “We deserve to have that continue. We did not do anything wrong.”

The Ed Lab asked CUSD about teachers’ responsibility in knowing the content of CMT shows and other materials before exposing students, whether on a field trip or in the classroom.

CUSD expects its teachers to assess content before field trips.

“Given the long-standing, trusted relationship with CMT, (teachers) had interpreted the lack of any parental guidance warning on material provided by them as sufficient information to move forward,” Avants said.

Over CMT’s 22-year existence, Stene said, the theater company has never provided material on production ratings.

Following last week’s incident, Stene said they’ll work proactively with the district to prevent such instances from ever happening again.

‘It’s not a happy story’

Based on the classic Charles Dickens novel “Oliver Twist,” the onstage production “Oliver!” is an award-winning musical adaptation by Lionel Bart.

The “dark themes” of violence, murder, underage drinking and abuse were “unbeknownst” to the teachers who determined it wasn’t appropriate for their young students, Avants said.

The teachers reported the musical’s themes to administration, which led to principals questioning if the content was appropriate for first- and second-graders set to attend the performance. They didn’t attend.

“The decision is consistent with what type of classroom content we do or do not include in the primary grades,” she said.

Stene said she agrees the story might not be suitable for 6- and 7-year-old first grade students, but said educators have a responsibility to know whether something is acceptable before they show it to their students.

The play carries a PG-rating, Stene said, and is appropriate for older and middle school students. She questioned why Kastner Intermediate School students weren’t allowed to attend.

Stene said when Clovis Unified refused to send its middle school students, they sent a message that CMT produced a performance that was inappropriate for that age group.

“That is what I think hurt our reputation the most — suggesting that we did something that middle school kids couldn’t watch,” she said.

Clovis administrators said middle school students weren’t allowed to attend because the district hadn’t sent home the correct permission slips for PG-rated content.

However, Clovis Unified didn’t notify CMT that students weren’t coming.

Stene said the rating information has never been provided. For the first time, CMT emailed districts about content info following the walkout.

CMT turns PG-rated productions into general audience (G-rated) renditions while preserving a show’s themes.

“But it’s not a happy story,” Stene said of Dickens’ tale of the young orphan’s encounters with pickpocket gangs and undertakers that satirized the deplorable conditions experienced by children on the streets of London in the 1800s.

The theaterworks program, which educates children through “performance and production,” seeks to expose Fresno-area students to musicals and plays, especially those who wouldn’t otherwise experience it.

For that reason, CMT has never put an age limit on its shows.

Toning down the dark themes – like changing a hanging to a “mute” death – the nonprofit organization directs musicals to be suitable for school shows, Stene said. Royalty protections stop significant changes to a script.

It has always been teachers’ responsibility to research content and determine if it’s appropriate for their students, whether that’s first grade, fourth grade or junior high grades.

“We want the teachers to make the determination as to which students are mature enough or should see the show,” Stene said.

Moving forward: shared responsibility

In the future, CMT will ensure school districts review content and ask questions before purchasing tickets. The organization will change its forms so that participants better understand how to prepare for the show.

And Clovis Unified, according to Avants, will be asking better questions.

“We mutually agreed that additional communication from them, and independent research by our team, will happen in the future given what occurred in this situation,” Avants said. “As I’ve said, we value and appreciate the creative work of CMT and the role the company has in our community, and expect our long-standing relationship with them to continue, with both of us having learned things through this experience that will improve our communication moving forward.”

And Stene wants teachers to continue to be the decision-makers by examining shows, asking questions, then deciding.

“We are going to change because we don’t want this to happen again, but we are going to share responsibility with the people who are bringing the kids.”

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