"I love to see kids start to believe in their worth," says Missy Gipson, actress, director and the woman at the helm of the Young Actors Guild in Fort Smith. "Confidence and skill building are the two things that I think are the most important gems that youth theater provides. [Kids learn] that they can achieve big things if they work together, and that hard work pays off."
This time, 45 youngsters from the River Valley are dancing down the Yellow Brick Road in "Oz: The REAL Story." That's three casts of 15 each, explains Gipson, performing publicly Feb. 14 and 15 and then touring to 15 outreach locations in Fort Smith and Northwest Arkansas.
FAQ
‘Oz: The REAL Story’
WHEN — 6, 7 & 8 p.m. Feb. 14 and 6, 7 & 8 p.m. Feb. 15
WHERE — First Lutheran Church, 1115 N. “D” St. in Fort Smith
COST — $7
INFO — WeareYAG.org
"It is the fourth show in my 'REAL Story' series," Gipson says. "Everyone loves the 'Wizard of Oz' story, so we decided to give it a twist."
"This story of Oz is told from the perspective of Toto and gives us insight as to what Toto was experiencing," says director Kim Pierson. "I've never seen a show that gives us his story.
"This has been so fun because we have three casts rehearsing simultaneously," she goes on. "So sometimes we have the principals and supporting actors of all three casts rehearsing at the same time, and other rehearsal times we have the three casts individually. They have been able to meet so many other actors that way and have learned to take from their ideas to enhance their characters.
"Although we love our performances for friends and family and the community, our real fun starts when we travel," Pierson adds. "We have to adapt and be brave to new locations and audiences. Of course, traveling around with your friends is fun, too."
"Just because you are not a lead role doesn't mean you're not an important part of the play or musical," agrees 16-year-old Shelby Hartwig. "Some of my favorite shows I have been in, I was ensemble."
Shelby says she has been a "YAG kid" since 2014, the summer before she started seventh grade.
"I have always loved 'The Wizard of Oz,'" she goes on. "Plus I had so much fun with the traveling show last year that I was so excited to have the chance to have that experience again.
"You get a chance to see kids put together a play in a small amount of time and have so much fun with it," adds Shelby, now a senior at Northside High School. "Plus it's a fun twist on the story of 'The Wizard of Oz,' and there are multiple funny moments in this show."
And it's not just the actors who benefit, adds Gipson.
"Being in the audience inspires kids. They start to see kids their own age do brave things, and they start to think they can do it, too."
Gipson says YAG also inspires her -- enough so that she drives from Fayetteville to be the company's executive director.
"YAG's focus has always been to provide high quality theater education opportunities for free," she explains. "Acting, singing, dance lessons are expensive, and we want to try to level the playing field for the families that can't afford them.
"I have seen so many kids grow in confidence and skill over the past decade! We have kids that were the first to go to college in their families, that ended up getting arts focused scholarships, and kids that just found their place. It's worth every mile to work with them!"
NAN What's Up on 02/08/2019