About the Academy

The Thelma Gaylord Academy and Lyric Production Center are housed in a joint facility, one block west of the Plaza Theatre. Officially named in 2006 to honor one of Lyric's founders, the Thelma Gaylord Academy has grown over eight years to become an outstanding resource for Oklahoma's youth. While a small number of Academy graduates go on to musical theatre careers, all students benefit from stellar professional training. The Academy offers wonderful opportunities to develop skills in teamwork, leadership, public speaking, and, of course, to build friendships and have fun.

Lyric’s Arts Outreach Program, “Musical Interactive”, currently reaches more than 30,000 schoolchildren. Arts outreach presentations in public and private school classrooms, offered free-of-charge to interested schools, provide a creative and highly effective teaching tool when combined with standard core curriculum.

The current program is “1776 Interactive,” a historically accurate depiction of events surrounding the writing and signing of the Declaration of Independence. A cast of 5 actors play the characters of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, and others. Each student receives a study guide with games and puzzles, while teachers have access to accompanying classroom activity resource guide to help them prepare or follow-up after the presentation.