Nebraska's Omaha Magic Theatre (OMT) and playwright Megan Terry are concerned with producing socially relevant, issue-oriented musical plays, focusing on young people and the adults who influence their emotional lives. OMT's "Theatre of Process" focuses upon the performing artist to develop and test ways to make theater more meaningful, exciting, and accessible to audiences. To help reach this goal, Terry listens to professional counselors, social workers, and OMT audiences in post-performance discussions to explore the causes of social problems besetting the American family. Each of her plays is constructed around a chosen conceptual theme, then grounded in a contextual situation. For example, "American King's English for Queens," written in 1978, looks at the influence of language and sexism on children's upbringing. In "Goona Goona," Terry explores the cyclical effects of domestic violence upon the physical, emotional, and ethical development of children, using Punch and Judy imagery and acrobatic feats of physical endurance. These texts serve as acting exercises for student actors to explore thematic issues in a visceral manner, and they stimulate further discussions of adolescent issues. Though secondary teachers may choose to emphasize the didactic nature inherent to varying degrees within each text, Megan Terry's artistic approach ensures a thought-provoking, theatrical experience for mature audiences. (MM)