Clinton Township Newsletter

2 4 j a n u a r y 2 0 2 3 W W W . C L I N T O N T W P N E W S L E T T E R . C O M Happy NewYe ! As the New Year rings in, we hope your heart is filled with music and DRAMA...of the theatrical kind, that is! One of the delights of Clinton Township is the amount of arts and talent we enjoy in our area, and C3Q is kicking off the year by talking to two local troupes to see what the year has in store! C3Q: Hello Carol Newman, Owner and Director of ShowKids Invitational Theatre, Inc, (SKIT) with her husband, actor and treasurer Tom Newman. Can you tell us a little bit about your troupe? How long has SKIT been performing in this area? CN: In 1986, SKIT began as a part of the Clinton Arts Center, and we put on a show at Voorhees High School with eleven children doing 'Really Rosie.' Since then, we've done shows with up to 125 children, but at that size it was hard to do them well, so we have cut back to two shows a year and a workshop, with ages from 7 to 71... it's a pretty big age span! During the pandemic, we were even able to do 'The Sound of Music' outdoors, with masks, and three casts of VonTrapps. It was a real feat, but we did it! Right now, we focus on two shows, usually one show with teenage actors and one show that spans children through teenagers. Recent productions have included 'Shrek' and 'Frozen Jr' and 'Newsies.' 'Newsies' in particular was one of my recent favorite shows, because the events really happened, and our performers were taught how it feels to be in a difficult situation. We were able to use pictures of the historical Newsies as a backdrop, and it was so powerful. 'Fiddler on the Roof' is another favorite of mine; it's timely no matter what time it is, there's meaning for everyone in that show. I also love 'Crazy for You,' because it has a nine minute dance number, and we enjoyed winning a Perry Award for 'Shrek.' C3Q: What are your upcoming shows this year? CN: We are performing 'Grease' January 21-29, with shows at 2:00 and 7:30 pm on Saturdays and Sundays, at Voorhees High School. In the spring, we are putting on 'Beauty and the Beast.' The kids work so hard, it is really important to them to have an audience, and we hope people will come out to support them and see their hard work. There are reduced prices for children and seniors and groups over 20, and you can purchase tickets at: www. ShowKids.org. C3Q: If someone wanted to get involved in SKIT, how do they do that? Also, why do you feel theater is important for children? CN:If you have a child and want to get involved, you can find information at our website showkids.org. We generally introduce performers into roles that are compatible with their skills and experience levels, and parents help with backstage duties. Theatre is so important for children; not everyone is an athlete. People have different skills. The skills that you learn from theatre last your whole life. You learn camaraderie, stage presence, and speaking in public, it is all wonderful. The kids really grow and gain stage presence, and the skills they gain in public speaking helps them in school; they do better on oral presentations, group work, and working together to accomplish a goal and overcome obstacles. It also helps their self esteem. The growth I've seen in kids is wonderful to see; they gain so much confidence. The families of the performers also bond, and get camaraderie and socialization. Lastly, the kids have so much fun! C3Q: Thank you Carol! We are looking forward to seeing 'Grease' this month, and 'Beauty and the Beast' in the spring! C3Q: Hello Mary Meo, Director of Clinton Area Stage Troupe (CAST). Can you tell us a little bit about CAST? How long has it been active in this area? MM: Clinton Area Stage Troupe began in the spring of 2008, and has been around for a little over fourteen years. I'm not sure how many shows we've done, but a show every year except 2020-2021. Typically, we do a musical in July, and another show in the spring or fall. Coming out of the pandemic, we were so excited to put on 'Guys and Dolls' with about fifty people involved. This past November, we also did the comedy 'The Man Who Came to Dinner' at North Hunterdon High School, with roughly thirty people in terms of cast and crew; we had children between ages 7-12, and in 'Guys and Dolls,' we had an eighty year old... it is a very varied troupe! People of all ages and experience levels have graced our stage. One of the special things is when you have family members who get to perform together on stage. We've had mother-daughter performances, husband-and-wife performances, multigenerational performances. Performing together can really bring a family closer. We get a nice mix of people and also never a shortage of male actors; we have a lot of men in our community who are willing to come out and sing! Also, it's really nice to get senior citizens who never had the opportunity to be on a stage, and now they are older and retired and t r y i n g s o m e t h i n g new and expressing their creative side! I love that, it's so exciting. T h e s a m e i s t r u e f o r young people just coming out of high school and c o l l e g e . M a n y t i m e s , theatre for young people ends at age 18 when they graduate. They might h a v e h a d g r e a t h i g h school experiences with theatre, but it so often ends there for young people, so it's wonderful to have something in the area close to home where they can continue to express their creativity through acting. One of my favorite moments as a director came last summer, when a young law student was helping teach a dance on stage to a senior citizen in between studying for school. Everyone involved shows such faithfulness and dedication. The local community gains so much from it as well. When you see a great script with some good life lessons, it's great for the performers and for the audience who is watching the shows; art expresses things beyond what you can see; the virtues we want to emulate, situations we find ourselves in; we can see how a character deals with that situation. It is great for the emotional health of a community as well as a terrific experience for the performer who puts on the shows. It's great to have the opportunity to create. C3Q: What are your upcoming shows this year? MM: On March 11, we are doing a Celtic Cabaret at the Flemington DIY. Actors and singers chose songs and soliloquies, and it's a cabaret of different performances which is performer-driven. There will be a musical in July. If someone is interested in becoming involved with CAST, they can check out our Facebook page or our website: www.ClintonAreaStageTroupe. com! Thank you Mary, we look forward to more rousing performances on the local stage! Rachel Sprague, a resident of Clinton Township, has a degree in journalism from Rutgers. With her husband Russell, Rachel is raising two young children in the Clinton Township School District. She thinks that Clinton Township is a delightful place to live. SKIT's presentation of Shrek in 2022, with Dakota Krouse winning Outstanding Male Youth Actor in a Musical from NJ ACT Welcome to with Rachel Sprague * C linton ree Questions * The CAST presentation of "The Man Who Came to Dinner" photo by Dave Dabour SKIT's presentation of Newsies in 2019, with Diane Lehnert winning NJ ACT's Outstanding Stage Management of a Musical, Barry DeVersterre. Aaron Willsey and Amy Whitmore winning Outstanding Set Design of a Musical, Carolyn Newman, Krisy Nasto winning Outstanding Direction of a Musical, and Jonah Lione winning Outstanding Male Youth Actor in a Musical.

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