Adventurous drama students took a quick but deep dive down the rabbit hole during Trike Theatre's first production camp of the summer.
The two-week camp, which began June 13, culminates this weekend with the production of "Alice in Wonderland." The performance is ensemble-based, which allows many of the actors to play multiple roles -- roles that weren't cast until the first day of camp, says director Jason Suel.
FAQ
‘Alice in Wonderland’
WHEN — 2 & 5:30 p.m. today, 2 & 5:30 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday
WHERE — Trike Theatre in Bentonville, 209 N.E. Second St.
COST — $10
INFO — 464-5084 or triketheatre.org
The show was blocked by the end of the third day, he adds.
"There's this frenetic energy all focused toward getting this show up and running, which makes the environment very exciting," Suel says.
There's also set work, costuming, learning lines and acting for the group to work on.
The campers, ages 8 to 13 with varying experience levels, come from all over Northwest Arkansas.
"That's one of the things I really like about our summer camps," Suel says. "It's a cross-section of Northwest Arkansas coming together -- families coming together to support young people being on stage."
The campers "are a good mash-up of people," who have worked at Trike and Arts Live or other places, Suel says.
Not all actors who auditioned for camp were cast. Those who didn't make the cut were encouraged to sign up for classes or camps at Trike and other theaters in the region, Suel says.
"As Trike is doing more production, we have more people come out to audition. It's healthy, competitive, but still supportive," Suel says.
The next production camp, "The Little Mermaid" is sold out, but the final one of the summer, "Cyrano," still has openings. Trike also offers weeklong summer camps through Aug. 12.
-- Kelly Barnett
NAN What's Up on 06/24/2016