More than 60 Dunkirk elementary students will enter the theatre ranks by joining the annual Playground Drama Day Camp, a week-long program conducted by the SUNY Fredonia Department of Theatre and Dance that culminates this year with the spring production of “Disney’s 101 Dalmatians Kids.”
These “Playground Players,” drawn from grades 3-5, will comprise the entire cast and crew that present the show on Friday, April 29, 6 p.m., at Dunkirk Middle School. There is no admission charge for family members and friends who’d like to join these youngsters on their journey into musical theatre.
Leading up to the show is a busy, yet fun-filled week of preparation that runs Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Rehearsals will be staged at the middle school each morning, while afternoons feature a mix of acting classes, musical theatre workshops, snacks and fun activities. There’s also a mid-day break for brown-bag lunches brought from home.
The format for this year’s camp was designed by Ted Sharon, theatre professor and camp director, along with Dan Lendzian and Marc de la Concha, both SUNY Fredonia alumni, on napkins while the three were dining at a Chinese restaurant in New York City in 2006.
Since 2008, the camp, supported by a 21st Century Grant through the College of Education and the Fredonia College Foundation's Carnahan-Jackson Humanities Fund, has hosted over 250 boys and girls. This year’s show will be the camp’s first off-campus production.
