CONNECTED

Social media has brought young people closer together than ever before, but it has also torn them apart.

Author and former teacher Craig Christie’s new musical with a message, Connected, will start touring through schools in 2015 to educate teenagers and parents about the dangers of cyberbullying.

“I think we all know about cyberbullying in a general sense, but it’s performed in such a powerful way in this musical that it brings home that it is a serious issue,” Christie says.

The production is the story of a girl who moves from the country to a new school and falls foul of the mean girl, and she becomes a target of cyberbullying.

Set to a soundtrack of indie-pop, the musical uses the language and style of teenagers to express the prevalence of cyberbullying and the destruction it can cause for those who experience it.

“This doesn’t fit the form or structure of a normal musical, it begins quite lightly and then it becomes very dark at one stage,” Craig says.

The musical is an educational and entertaining look at cyberbullying that is perfect for both children and adults.

“I hope it alerts them to issues and encourages people to start more of a dialogue with their parents,” says Craig. (SOC)

Touring through schools 2015, $11-$22, connectedthemusical.com.au

Written by Shauna O’Carroll