At Arsht Center, Miami-Dade seventh-graders collaborate on new STEAM-focused musical

A group of Miami-Dade Schools seventh-grade students and teachers on Oct. 14 gathered at the Adrienne Arsht Center in Miami to contribute to “Kitty Hawk,” one of the first STEAM-focused musicals in the nation.

“One of the first STEAM-focused musicals in the country, it is part performance, part curriculum and all inspiration,” according to an Arsht Center news release. “Kitty Hawk” aims to make history come alive and be more relevant and fun for seventh-graders learning about Wilbur and Orville Wright’s historic first flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina in 1903.”

“Kitty Hawk” is early in the creative process. Students met with playwright Tom Bryant, composer Erik Della Penna and artistic director Nathan Allen, along with Arsht Center President and CEO John Richard and Miami-Dade Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho.

“This exposed students to the creative process at an early stage and gave them the opportunity to share ideas on the performance and curriculum. They provided invaluable feedback on the initial script, plot and a portion of the original score,” according to the news release.

“The program comes with an important and ambitious goal beyond entertainment and education. ‘Kitty Hawk’ also aims to fuel student interest in pursuing a science, technology, engineering, arts or mathematics career — collectively known as STEAM.”

This story was originally published October 18, 2016 at 12:21 PM with the headline "At Arsht Center, Miami-Dade seventh-graders collaborate on new STEAM-focused musical."