Moonlight Musicals: Behind the Scenes of Elf the Musical

By Michelle Bless Patrons have been watching Moonlight Musicals performances for 14 years. People understand casts rehearse prior to the show, but rarely do people know how many rehearsals it takes to get the lines right, how many runs of the choreography before the steps are perfected. A behind the scenes video shows the cast […]

Moonlight Musicals: Opportunities to Create Something Bigger

By Michelle Bless Gerald Dolter, the founder of Moonlight Musicals and professor of voice at Texas Tech University, said he wanted to give his students the opportunity to gain on-stage experience in live theatre. His fellow professor of voice, Karl Dent, had the same intention. “As a teacher, you have an inborn goal of helping […]

Moonlight Academy: Creating opportunity to create performers

By: Michelle Bless Editor’s note: This article is the third in a series of stories about Lubbock’s Moonlight Musicals.  In 2015, Moonlight Musicals started an after-school program dedicated to teaching children in the Lubbock community the triple-threat theater craft of singing, acting, and dancing. Frank Rendon gained control of the project as the director of […]

The World’s a Stage: Moonlight Musicals Preps Actors for Future

  By Michelle Bless Editor’s note: This article is the second in a series of stories about Lubbock’s Moonlight Musicals.  Since its first show premiered in 2006, Moonlight Musicals has provided Texas Tech University students with opportunities to build their resumes and gain experience in live theater. Rose Duncan, the choir director of Frenship Middle […]

From Dirt to Drama: Moonlight Musicals Gain Traction with Local Audiences

By Michelle Bless Editor’s note: This article is the first in a series of stories about Lubbock’s Moonlight Musicals.  In April 2005, Texas Tech Professor of Voice Gerald Dolter heard the City of Lubbock was building an amphitheater in Mackenzie Park. After years of performing and teaching in Germany followed by years of summers spent […]

Three Nights At The Opera

The Texas Tech University School of Music and Lubbock Moonlight Musicals will perform two one act operas, “Suor Angelica” and “The Old Maid and The Thief” on September 26-28 at the Wells Fargo Amphitheater. ‘Suor Angelica’ was written by Italian composer Giacomo Puccini, who is notable for other works like “La Boheme” and “Madama Butterfly.” […]