Over the course of the past five months, I have had the privilege of being part of something big. Something FUN. Our friends Tracy Neff and Tony Barton have started a theatre company called Delta Youth Theatre. This year they had their debut show, Into the Woods!
The show probably was the most fun I’ve had in theatre! Into the Woods is a great show because it doesn't just rely on two main characters, meaning that everyone gets ‘larger’ roles. I played a fox. Yes, I know there is no fox in Into the Woods, (and that kind of goes against what I just said)! Quite frankly I wasn’t the happiest with the role when I first was cast: “Woodland Animal #3” Didn’t appeal to me too much. It was only when we got to the character development stage that I realized how much fun I could have with my character.
I was only in three dance numbers, (one at the beginning, in the very middle of the show, and the end) and I had no lines, all I had to do was move the tree prop that I would move during blackouts. I was basically hiding behind it for the whole show. Because of this Tony and Tracy kept encouraging me and the other girls who played woodland creatures to “pop out” from behind our trees. This was fun. I could basically do whatever I (as a fox) wanted to as long as I didn’t distract the audience and stayed in character.
After almost five months full of long Sunday night rehearsals, it was show time at the Metro Theatre! These were the hardest. Most kids were double (actually quadruple) cast so out of eight shows, most of the cast only got two performances. But I was a fox, and as I mentioned earlier, there is no fox in the Into the Woods script. The role was not double cast, let alone quadruple cast, so I was in EVERY SHOW. One day I was at the theatre for a THIRTEEN hours straight!! Three shows a day (with breaks in between) was hard, but it was rewarding and fun!
One of my favourite experiences was in between shows on our second day of performances. Tracy was going to walk over to a nearby Starbucks with some others, and she asked me if I wanted to come. I LOVE Starbucks, so of course I said "yes". On the way, people kept staring at me in my fox costume and makeup (My makeup was amazing by the way). We passed a younger kid, who was staring amazed at my costume. I thought, let them stare. Today, I am a fox, afterall.
And so there’s your life lesson for today, If things get hard, keep working. Something good is bound to come out of it.
Auditions for Delta Youth Theatre's next show will be held on May 15th. If you or your young performer are interested in auditioning please click this link and follow that instructions to secure an audition! http://www.deltayouththeatre.com/#!auditions-1/dt43g
