Yet for Helen Sinclair, stagiest of actresses and larger than life in her own living room, theater techniques designed to project 500 seats back seemed just right.

"What we really did stylistically with 'West Side Story' was take every musical theater technique as far as it could be taken," Laurents writes.

They agree beforehand who has creative control over which character, and sometimes the three, particularly Meier and Wehrstein, use improv theater techniques to realize scenes.

It combined traditional Marathi folk music and drama with contemporary theater techniques, creating a new paradigm for Marathi theater.

For student tours, the educators use interactive inquiry methods, role-play, theater techniques and guided art projects to promote enjoyment and understanding.

"When I heard certain musical theater technique applied to my music, I tried to nip that in the bud as much as possible," he said.

Now, Mr. Krukowski is using some of his theater techniques in a different medium.

In spite of her Western education, Gauhar does not limit her practice to classical Western theater techniques.

"We used theater techniques to explore the kids' personal experiences, because there wasn't any theater addressing what was going on in their lives," he said.

The production coincides with Penn's annual spring festival, and the play will be held in an outdoor amphitheater to mimic ancient theater techniques.