Posts Tagged ‘Center Stage’

This summer Center Stage will hold a Drama Conservatory for Students ages 5 – 19, July 9th – August 3rd at the Grace Church in Rutland VT.  We are already busily planning the program, and online registration will be available on the Center Stage website within days.  We will also have registration forms that can be printed and sent to us by actual mail!

We are so excited to be spending a month in Vermont, and I am so hoping to see a lot of familiar as well as lovely new faces in our classes.  My Graduate work has opened new horizons for me in the realm of teaching and directing, and I am very excited have this opportunity to bring what I have discovered to young people in VT!

 

Center Stage Youth Theatre will be in residence at the Grace Church in Rutland VT this summer, July 9 – August 4, to offer 4 weeks of day camps for kids in grades K-2, 3-6 and 7-12.  The K-2′ers and the 3-6′ers will each meet for two weeks of mornings with a performance on the last day of camp, and the 7-12th graders will be working with me on a Shakespeare Intensive, rehearsing every afternoon for all four weeks with two performances at the end of the session.

 

The little ones will be working on a musical based on a Native American legend, Coyote Steals the Summer, and I am leaning towards the Tempest for the olders, though that is not yet written in stone!  The middle guys I am not sure about yet, though we had great fun with exploring Greek Myths about 6 years ago and I am looking at doing that again maybe this summer – The Greeks ONstage!

 

Stay tuned…

I feel a sense of loss at the lack of success our CS programs have experienced this year.  While our little night of Theatre and Music was a delight, and I was so very proud of the participants that evening,  the truth is that so many children who registered did not complete the program.  They either dropped out without a word, or kept coming sporadically and then stopped altogether.  It  was frustrating for me, yes, but I think it was frustrating for the other kids too, whose scenes had to be canceled, duets reorganized etc.  And it was embarrassing.

But this area offers so many theatre programs for kids, and it cannot be ignored that I have no money, hardly any contacts and very little community awareness of my style or support of my philosophies.  And this is in no way a judgement, as every program has their own goals.  But oh!  I am starting to yearn to be a part of a sure thing, with a budget, regulars and a support system!  lol – I intend to look into becoming involved somehow, whether it is at first only backstage.  I miss the well oiled machine aspect of a well produced show.

Well, the camp program registrations are not exactly the hottest items in town – current roster at 0 -  so I have decided to cancel the first two sessions and to take that time to work on completing my Masters Degree in VT.  The third session which is for the Middle/High school set actually has 2 kids in it already and so I will be hoping on that one for a bit now – if I can get at least 8 kids we will make it go.

Anybody?

Our little night of Theatre and Music was a big hit!  The children shone as always, and were so proud of themselves, with very good reason.  They were so excited and so happy – and SM Shelby was great with them and everything ran smoothly.  A couple of weeks ago I found myself stressing that “this will never work.”  I know that this is never the case, in the end – for heaven’s sake I wrote a BOOK about  that very thing!   I sometimes wonder if the worrying is part of the creative process itself.  Not may favorite part for sure, and almost always unnecessary.

The kids and their families ahd a great time, and our experiment – I had always wanted to try something like this – was a great success. The hard work and dedication of the children and their families paid off so well.  I was impressed with them all and loved the experience of watching them with their families afterwords.

I love my job.

This week in our little Center Stage group it finally became clear what we were working towards.  Not a big fancy revue or even a recital, but a presentation of our work:  a work in progress.And I finally gave in to what I have never given into before, and put some of my quiet little ones on mic.  It is going to make them hear-able and in this way we can concentrate now of getting their little pieces ready for performance rather than my always stopping them to say that I can’t hear them.  I want them to be comfortable at this point, and relax into what their performance is going to be.

It is really quite charming, the way they have taken to their work.  I am very proud of them.  I will talk to the audience about how the show is going to be a demonstration of what we have been working on, rather than a finished product, and not to be concerned if they see me stop and work with the kids during the evening.  And this way it will be a chance to show the families how we all work together to create a production, and hopefully our methods will shine and the parents will understand this way how the goal is always to foster growth and confidence in the children, rather than to showcase their specific talents.  And those talents will, I am sure, shine through as well.

This week we continued with our rehearsals and welcomed back that bundle of energy better known ans Stage Manager  Shelby, who has been invaluable in her willingness to not only organize and clarify in true stage management fashion, but has also begun lending us her expertise in helping with the musical details.

There has been a lot of absenteeism, and a couple more kids have dropped out of the project this week.  But we have our core group of the little faithfuls as well as the energetic weekenders whose mom’s busy schedules preclude their attending the weekday rehearsals.  The show itself will be more of a recital, and hopefully low key, fun and a way for our students to learn the joy of creativity and collaborative work.

Tomorrow I will meet for the first time in a couple of weeks with the Center Stage kids for a rehearsal for our Musical Theatre and Acting recital that will take place May 13 and 15.  It has been a long break, and I am still not back in tip top shape, but I am looking forward to seeing and hearing what the kids have been working on during the last few weeks on their own.

We’ll need to get straight just who is going to be ready to do what, and make those decisions tomorrow.  I have given them so much material, especially some of them!  I only hope that we can mold this experience into something that becomes a sweet, low key chance for the kids to perform well, but without the pressure of a big show.  Something that gives them a chance to shine, to experience success and to hopefully learn a few things; about themselves, about the Center Stage, and about the joy found in the world of theatre arts.

 

Center Stage Youth Theatre at Glenforest School

Announces Summer Camps for

grades K-2, 3-6 and 7-12!

 

Coyote Steals the Summer

Monday, June 20 – Friday, July 1 for grades K-2

Glenforest School, 1041 Harbor Drive, West Columbia

Session 1- 9:00 – 11:30

Session 2 – 12:30 – 3:00

Fees – $150.00

Once it was winter all of the time…Summer was trapped in a bag inside a tipi at the snow’s edge (a very, very long long way from here). This Native American tale tells how Coyote brings summer to the world and earns his famous gift of trickery as a reward. Our fifteen minute musical version of this delightful story from the Crow Nation is designed especially for K-third grade.  The little ones will have a chance to rehearse, create costumes and sets, and perform for loved ones on the last day of camp!  This performing arts camp is ideal for children with learning differences or unique learning needs, as well as students with traditional learning styles.  For more information or to register call Center Stage Director Susan Scaccia at at 803-796-7622 ext. 216, 803-206-4924 or visit http://glenforest.org/summercamps.

 

 

 

 

A Year With Frog and Toad

Tuesday, July5th through Friday, July 15 for grades 3-6

Glenforest School, 1041 Harbor Drive, West Columbia

Session 1 – 9:00 – 11:30

Session 2 – 12:30 – 3:00

Fee – 150.00

Arnold Lobel’s well loved characters hop from page to stage in this musical adaptation, which remains true to the sprit of the original books as it  follows the great friends, the cheerful and popular frog and the rather grumpy frog, through four fun filled seasons!  We will rehearse, design costumes and sets and finally perform for family and friends on the last day of camp! This performing arts camp is ideal for children with learning differences or unique learning needs, as well as students with traditional learning styles.  For more information or to register call Center Stage Director Susan Scaccia at at 803-796-7622 ext. 216, 803-206-4924 or visit http://glenforest.org/summercamps.

 

 

Acting Camp for Middle and High Schoolers!

Fables and Folk Tales

Monday July 18 – Friday July 29

Glenforest School, 1041 Harbor Drive, West Columbia

9:00 am – 3:00 pm

Limit 15

Fee – $300.00

 

This summer come and spend two weeks with Center Stage and work with us creating a production of Fables and Folk Tales from around the world.  Students will choose their favorite scripts from American and International traditional tales, and then design and create scenery, costumes and props, as we turn our studio classroom into a fully functional studio theatre, with the entire production rehearsed, designed, and finally performed on the last day of camp by our students for the public. This performing arts camp is ideal for children with learning differences or unique learning needs, as well as students with traditional learning styles.  For more information or to register call Center Stage Director Susan Scaccia at at 803-796-7622 ext. 216, 803-206-4924 or visit http://glenforest.org/summercamps.

 

 

Center Stage Youth Theatre Well folks, its finally done! My new book, “No Small Parts”  Inspiring Character Development, Creativity, and Community Through Youth Theatre    is now available for purchase! And for my loyal subscribers and followers I have a special deal! 35 % OFF That’s right! My book is now listed for purchase on Amazon.com for $14.95, but you can get it direct from me for the low price of $9.75, which includes S&H. Just click on the link below and order your autographed copy of “No Small Parts” today! Please Click Here to Order! Call me direct at 803-206-4924 if you have any questions! – -