You have a theater youth camp as well that has been running for several years, what can you tell me about that?
Yes we have a theater camp program. It is a 6 week summer program, Monday through Friday 9am-3:30pm, for children ages 7-15. I started it 12 years ago and my only members were kids whose parents didn't sign them up for the other camp programs on time. The kids did NOT want to be there and did NOT want to do anything in theater. Somehow I managed to get them to do a talent show the first year, and then I started to do some published plays with them. Finally word started to spread and the kids that signed up honestly wanted to perform and be involved in theater.
What do the theater camp kids do as actors?
I hooked up with Music Theater International and their Broadway Jr. collection. They are musicals in a box; the shows are condensed to a running time of an hour and 15 min or so. The kids work with me as a professional director, a professional choreographer, and set designer. I produce the show like it was any professional show or a community show. With pre-production and post-production planning, every child gets a role in the show but during the first week we still hold auditions to see who will get what role. Then we run a rehearsal schedule just like any other show. Every kid has a role and I try to figure out a way to feature as many kids as I can, without losing the integrity of the show we are performing. They sing, they dance, and as we get closer to the performance the kids get to help out painting the sets and making some of the props. There are 2 performances in the final week of the camp: One matinee for the other camps in the program and in the city and one for family and friends at night.
What exposure do they have to the theater outside of the camp?
The kids go on 5 trips throughout the summer as well. We go to see 3 Broadway shows and we go to a water park and medieval times. Outside of the camp program we frequently have auditions for show that require children at the arts center, and we offer smaller 1 to 2 day a week acting classes during the year. Then we hand them up to the High school and the theater department. Because the program is subsidized thorough the city it is for Hackensack Residents only, and the cost is kept to a low $475, for the entire 6 weeks including the trips, lunch every day and a snack. (I apply for a grant through the New Jersey department of agriculture for the food). I do hope once the new building is completed to expand it to non-residents.
