Hi there! The names Emily B. I’m an education intern at Emerald City Theatre. Would you believe that this time of year, we have over 100 performances going on throughout the city? That number includes professional shows at the Apollo Theatre and Broadway in Chicago (If You Give a Cat a Cupcake, Junie B. Jones in Jingle Bells Batman Smells, and Pinkalicious), our theatre school final showcases , our touring shows, and all of our after school presentations! All that acting sure keeps us intern elves busy, working behind the scenes and in the classroom to prepare young thespians to take the stage! I work with both theatre school and after school students, helping them create an ensemble, develop characters, and rehearse scenes along with musical numbers. Many of these student performances are open to the public! (Get tickets here!) I have learned a lot from watching these kids work so hard to create a show. Mainly, I’ve learned that you should never underestimate the power of a child’s imagination!
Sometimes it can be hard to tap into that same imagination as an adult, but the professional actors of Junie B. Jones Jingle Bells Batman Smells are pros at this! I recently got a sneak peak of our newest show, which opened November 19th. I got to see the show before it officially opened, when they were running a technical rehearsal, which is the professional word for putting all the pieces together (lights, sound, and set), and seeing if they all work together. In spite of problems with props and scenery changes, the actors and director were able to find solutions that worked for everybody. When I saw a full run, I was impressed by the stamina of the actors – they are able to keep up with the high energy of the show while moving lots of set pieces and being very physically energetic throughout. To top it off, they were also really funny!
At Lycee Francais de Chicago, one of our after school partners, I work with students who are creating a Junie B. play of their very own! The students at Lycee still have ten weeks before they take the stage with their play, so they have been working on characters, creating gestures for their characters, and writing a 20 line scene between Junie B. and Mean Ol’ Jim. Recently, they got to perform two of the monologues from the professional play. The students are writing the scenes they will perform, which will be different from what you see on our professional stage. It is based on the books, the children’s own experiences, and their ideas.
Emerald City Theatre School’s Mamma Mia class recently made props, like dolphins, palm trees, and a disco ball for our final showcase presentation which is only a few weeks away! Everyone was very excited, and we had a lot of props to make but we still managed to rehearse three songs (Dancing Queen, Thank You For the Music, and Take a Chance on Me) and create the dance for one, too! Our Mamma Mia script is different from the original, and our students get to perform a lot of physical comedy and goofy bits (just like the professionals!) I’ve had a lot of fun with all my students, helping them rehearse and grow!
We’re all working really hard to create some wonderful performances that I hope you’ll join us to see! And with over 100 performances in 38 days, there’s bound to be something out there for you!
