In January, I auditioned for the play “The Prince And The Pauper, A Musical” at East Valley Children’s Theatre (EVCT). It is the story of two young boys, a prince, and a pauper, who look amazingly alike. They meet by chance and accidentally swap spots! Neither of them is quite sure what to do outside of their usual lives so, of course, chaos ensues!
When I went to auditions, I felt nervous, but then I talked to the people next to me and felt a bit better. Later that night, I got a call inviting me to callbacks! At callbacks I felt more confident. The audition and callback involved singing, acting and dancing. After callbacks, I got an email saying that they couldn’t use my talents this time around. I felt really, really sad and disappointed, though I knew that I had given it my best shot.
But guess what? Early the next day, I got a message saying that an actor had to pull out of the production, asking if I would be able to take a role. I was so excited! Since then, I have had a lot of fun, learning the script, learning the choreography, singing, and making friends.
I thought Artistic Director Karen Rolston would have lots of interesting ideas to share about acting so I interviewed her. During auditions, she says, “The first thing I look for is listeners, then those who follow directions, someone who seems to really want to be there and is having fun, and then the usual things: Can I hear them? Are they fun to watch? And do they bring something to the character they are reading for?”
“One of my biggest frustrations is people that don’t really want to be in the show, and they don’t give their best effort,” says Rolston. She believes that if everyone in a show, no matter how much experience they have, works their hardest and does their absolute best, the show will be amazing and everyone involved will feel great about what they have accomplished.
Rolston says that the most magical part of directing is watching a show come alive from the pages and seeing how everything, the kids, designers, choreography, songs, blocking, and expression come together and grow from the original idea. “I wish that people knew we were around here and what a great place it is,” says Rolston. “It’s a wonderful place to learn about theatre and so much more than acting, like time management, working together as a group, and gaining perspectives when working with other people.”
When asked what she is looking forward to for the future of EVCT, Rolston said, “We’ve been here for 25 years, so I’m just excited that it’s been here that long and moving forward. I hope that it continues to grow like it has the last 25 years into this great place where kids can have a great time.”
If you like acting or would like to see EVCT perform, check out evct.org .
