JONESBOROUGH REPERTORY THEATRE

Putting a musical on stage is always a challenge, even for seasoned adult performers. Jonesborough Repertory Theatre, as part of its Educational Program, has taken on quite a challenge — taking a group of theater students and, over two weeks of summer acting camp, putting together a stage-ready musical.

The youth program’s production camp culminates this weekend with six performances — three Friday and three Saturday — of "Into the Woods Junior." Adapted for young performers, it is based on the musical "Into the Woods" by Stephen Sondheim from the book by James Lapine, and incorporates classic fairy tale characters like Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and his beanstalk and The Witch.

This is the third two-week youth camp JRT has hosted and they are ambitious projects, said JRT director Kathleen Buttolph. "The kids go from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. the first week, then until about 3 p.m. the second week, doing everything from making set pieces and props to painting, working on the curtains, bringing the costumes together, to actually learning the lines and songs and doing the acting.

"It’s not our first camp, and a lot of the students are not new to theater, but this is the first time we’ve done a student musical and it is the first time for many of them.

"But they’re so talented, our entire group: skilled actors, musicians and dancers."

The students range in age from rising fourth-graders through high school seniors, and in fact two of the leading parts ended up being filled by students now in college. The support crew includes adults in college and older. Buttolph directs the camp, Robin Beals is the choreographer, Marianne Stevens in the music director, Cristin Colvin provides piano accompaniment, Janette Gaines is assisting with sound and staging, Pamela Adolphi is the production’s lighting designer and Landon Simmons is the light board operator.

Buttolph said the students don’t audition for specific parts in the production, but on the first day they give an audition and then are assigned a part that fits them.

One of the challenges for the students is learning how to get the tempo right, count the beat and get the timing down. That’s one of the things that sets apart a musical from a regular play. Buttolph also said the kids are pushed to be aggressive learners and to write down instructions as they’re taught.

"Since we only have two weeks, we’re kind of throwing it at them," she said. "We constantly tell them ‘Write this down.’ Fortunately, we are blessed with a group of good listeners."

As for the props and the set, it’s a minimalist production, she added, so that aspect of the preparation hasn’t been too complicated.

The musical’s story line involves the Baker and his wife, who want a child but realize a curse has been put on their home. In order to break the curse, they need one item from all of the other fairy tale characters, including, for example, a lock of Rapunzel’s hair.

"Into the Woods" premiered in 1987 and won several Tony awards, then was revived on Broadway in 2002.

The JRT cast includes Annika Burley, Christina Fulcher, Walker Godfrey, Sarah Hall, Colin and Hannah Jeffress, Jake Jones, Kathryn and Sarah Ann Kenneson, Kathleen and Sarah King, Ellen LaPrade, Chase McNabb, Hunter Miller, Andrew Nichols, Kevin O’Bryan, Chrissy Portwine, Lucas Schmidt, Haley Sullivan, Cassidy Taylor, Gabby Wexler and Alaina and Ashlyn Wood.

The JRT student program is sponsored by the Johnson City Power Board. Show times Friday are 10 a.m., 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.; on Saturday they’re 2, 4 and 7 p.m. Tickets are $10 general admission, $5 for students. Call the Historic Jonesborough Visitors Center at 753-1010.

It’s a busy time for JRT, which is actually rehearsing two productions at once, the camp in the morning and afternoon and then the annual "1940s USO Show" in the evenings. They’re also starting read-throughs and beginning rehearsals on two other shows.

"We have to clean up one show, get the next one ready, then break it down for the camp the next morning," Buttolph said. "We’re constantly back and forth. But it’s an exciting time.

"I hope we can get people to realize that theater for young people is just as great to see as our regular productions."

Article courtesy of johnsoncitypress.com