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>> LOCAL DRAMA CAMPS--AT RIVERSIDE, CYT AND STAGE DOOR PRODUCTIONS--TEACH KIDS SKILLS FOR STAGE AND LIFE

July 2, 2009 12:35 am

By Collette Caprara

for the free lance-star

While Shakespeare declared, "All the world's a stage," folks at three local theater companies offering summer camps for children might add that the stage is an excellent doorway to the world--especially for young people.

Spokespersons for the Riverside Children's Theater, Stage Door Productions and the Fredericksburg Christian Youth Theater all highlight the link between theater experience and the development of life skills.

"I think one of the most amazing things is that kids grow so much in their self-confidence, and being able to speak before people in theater camp," said Pam King, CYT camp director. "And that's a quality they will carry with them throughout their lives, through college and their careers."

Personal development for youngsters is an enormous benefit from summer camps, say officials at Riverside.

"The children gain a great deal of self-confidence--and they learn to work together in a group," said Riverside's camp director Sue McCloskey. "They're learning drama and dance, but they're also learning to play off each other, and to help each other."

Riverside Theater's founder and general manager Ron Wehman recognizes the important role the camps can play in a child's confidence and communication skills.

"One little girl was so shy that her mother had to stay with her throughout the first day," he recalled. "But by the time the week was over she blossomed into one of our most talented little actresses.

"I think that's because of an atmosphere in which everyone's encouraged to develop their talent to the max."

Stage Door officials agree.

"Part of Stage Door's mission is to introduce young learners to the value of theater," said the company's director, Kimberly Kemp. "Through the experience of theater, you gain so many lifelong skills--learning to communicate with people and to deal with different types of personalities and expanding your imagination."

The Christian Youth Theater will be offering two week-long camps: one for children ages 12-18 that will climax with a production of "Beauty and the Beast," and another for ages 6 through 12, whose finale will be a performance of "The Aristocats."

"Our motto is 'Building Character: One Stage at a Time,'" said King. "That refers not only to building a character onstage, but building the character of who you are as a person--how to present yourself, good morals, good judgment, honesty, integrity and teamwork.

"The kids will have workshops in drama, music and choreography, all taught by professionals in our area. They'll audition for parts in the production on the first day and learn how to develop those characters and to bring them alive onstage."

Riverside Theater's children's camps will be held in two "tracks" over the course of two weeks: Children ages 8-12 will attend morning sessions, while sessions for ages 13-18 will be held in the afternoon, with the two groups sharing an overlapping lunch period.

"We consider it very important that our instructors are not only professionals in their craft but also have experience in teaching children and young people," said Wehman.

"The camps are intended to give a moderately in-depth understanding of all facets of musical theater. It's a broad-brush composite training. The purpose of our summer camp is to prepare young people for appearances on a musical theater stage or to engage in backstage activities."

Wehman is particularly proud of the legacy that Riverside's camps have created.

"Our camps have inspired some participants to continue on in the theater--and some have risen as far as Broadway shows," he said.

The key aspects of musical theater in the Riverside sessions will be dialogue delivery, vocal performance, choreography and technical skills.

Stage Door Productions July camps will be offered through Spotsylvania's Department of Parks and Recreation, and will be offered in four sessions: Art Camp, Musical Theater Camp, Creative Arts Camp and a Comedy Production Camp.

The Musical Theater camp will include instruction in dialogue delivery, character interpretation, dance and choreography, and singing, and will feature a musical review as a finale.

The sessions on Comedy Production will be preparation for a performance of the Seussification of "Romeo and Juliet."

While all the camps above are designed for grades 3-8, the Creative Arts Camp is offered to children in grades K-2.

Collette Caprara is a local artist and freelance writer.