barkley said:
one of my current big frustrations with it is related to the issue of child performers no longer receiving any type of arts training in the public schools. unfortunatly the majority that enter community theatre have only had private instruction or "pay for participation" children's theatre experience and have not been taught appropriate theatre behaviour or manners. i have encountered enough child actors who have been misguided into believing that the are such "unreplaceable gems" to a production (and parents who share the same belief/support their child's inappropriate behaviour, non attendance at key rehearsals, tantrums....) that i opt to no longer participate in most productions that include children.
I don't know if you read my post, but I have two daughters who have done a lot of community theatre, the youngest beginning at the age of eight. I found that most of the problems that came up with any of the kids in any of the shows that my daughters were in, came from the parents, NOT the kids themselves.
I have to say that most of the kids I encountered were delightful and actually acted very professsionally. But the parents, OMG! THEY were the ones who thought their child was the only one who mattered in the production. I saw a lot of parents acting like children, while the kids were wonderfully supportive of each other.
I also don't believe in spending money to get kids into theatre. I never spent one dime on acting/singing lessons for either daughter and they didn't need the lessons. My feeling is, either you've got it or you don't, especially at that young an age. Younger daughter was with a local talent agency for a few years and again, it didn't cost ANY money, and it SHOULDN'T cost any money. Whenever she got a paying role, the agent got ten percent and daughter got the rest.
Both daughters did summerstock theatre for a few summers and really enjoyed it. It was a wonderful old barn-type theatre, kind of like back in the days of Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney. At intermission fresh strawberry shortcake was the real treat, where audience members would eat it sitting outside at picnic tables or under the pine trees. Both girls gained a tremendous amount of knowledge during their years in community theatre, and it was a fantastic learning experience, coming into contact with so many people of various ages and backgrounds.
Of course, you're always going to run into people who make the experience less than enjoyable, but I really found those people to be in the minority.
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) to finaly some wonderful character roles (mrs. sowerberry in oliver, the lead rich archrival in "the unsinkable molly jones"...) and it's been wonderfully enjoyable.
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