The Reynolds Elementary School Youth Players have been hard at work rehearsing for their eighth musical production, “We Are Monsters.” The play runs March 26 through 28.
Many of the parent volunteers are veterans of the Players’ productions, including producer Linda Horan and director Richard Madden. Horan and Madden have seen their own children through several years of plays at Reynolds, the only elementary school in the Baldwinsville Central School District that puts on a yearly performance.
Alumni of Reynolds Youth Players include Julia Goodwin, the 2013 winner of Michael Feinstein’s Great American Songbook High School Vocal Competition and 2014 contestant on “America’s Got Talent.” Goodwin starred in “Annie,” the school’s first production, in 2007.
At Reynolds, third-, fourth- and fifth-graders star in the full-length performance, while kindergarteners, first- and second-graders put on a “mini-musical.” The upcoming “We Are Monsters” features 41 performers in grades three through five.
The kids rehearse in the gymnasium throughout January and February before moving to the “cafetorium” for the days leading up to the show. Madden, who has a background in theater, aims to teach the youngsters basic acting and speaking skills, such as facing the audience and projecting the voice.
“You can see a kid that starts out that wasn’t as confident … by the end, they really blossom,” Horan said.
“We were passing out solos for a song, and a boy who was very shy was like, ‘Can I have one?’” Madden said.
Madden said it’s not all easy sailing to wrangle nearly four dozen kids into an acting ensemble.
“Trying to keep 8-, 9-, 10-year-olds quiet backstage — it really is a challenge with kids this young,” he said.
Despite the bumps along the road, the Players — and the roughly 30 parent volunteers who take care of everything from costumes to sets to tickets — find that hard work pays off.
“It’s been embraced by the larger Baldwinsville community with a lot of gusto,” Horan said.
“It’s cool because right now, Baker High School is getting ready to do ‘Little Shop of Horrors,’” Madden said. “There are several kids that are performing up there that [started] here.”
Showtimes for “We Are Monsters” are 7 p.m. Thursday, March 26, and Friday, March 27, and 2 p.m. Saturday, March 28. All performances will take place in the Reynolds “cafetorium.” Tickets go on sale March 9. Call 559-7878 or email [email protected] to reserve tickets.
