Energetic staff turned kids into "players" in theatre camp

Boys and girls from “Playground” rehearse a scene from the 2008 mainstage production “HONK! Jr.”

Nearly 70 children from the area acted and sang in the musical, “HONK! Jr.” in the second “Playground” summer drama camp conducted by the SUNY Fredonia Department of Theatre and Dance. The week-long introduction to the dramatic arts ran from August 18 to August 23.

Director of the program Professor Ted Sharon said, “We originally

Theatre Professor  Ted Sharon directed the summer theatre camp. See more photos.

planned on accepting 55 children between the ages of 8 and 14 on a first-come, first-served basis, but ended up accepting 69 from the ages 7 to 14.”

Campers consisted of children from Chautauqua County and the surrounding area, including members of the Boys and Girls Club. SUNY Fredonia faculty, alumni and students from the theatre department staffed the camp, bringing an extra dose of youthfulness and special creativity to the instruction. “The staff was made up of some of the most creative people,” Professor Sharon said. “ It was incredibly rewarding for me to have taught students and then invite them back as alumni so they could pass on what they’ve learned to the next generation.”

Boys and girls from Silver Creek, Dunkirk, Fredonia, Westfield and Brocton attended the five-day camp, and quickly were turned into “Playground Players,” an acting troupe, by the energetic staff.

The camp started in the morning between 8:30 and 9:15 with an open drop-off period while creative activities ensued, and then began with rehearsals for the main stage musical “HONK! Junior."

In the afternoons, following a brown-bag lunch, campers participated in a variety of drama classes, including Writers Workshop and Acting Up.

While Professor Sharon is proud of the camp the theatre department offers, he praised others offered by SUNY Fredonia to area youngsters. “All of SUNY Fredonia’s camps are excellent,” he said, “because the goal is the same: character development. In our case, we just use a theatre as our backdrop to encourage that to happen.”

The college charges a tuition to attend the camp, but accessibility was expanded to the broader community thanks to scholarships that were offered to area students as well as to members of the Boys and Girls Club of Northern Chautauqua County.  The Fredonia College Foundation’s Carnahan-Jackson Humanities Fund provided funding for the scholarships, bringing philanthropy, education and theatrical creativity together for the good of the children.

Professor Sharon hopes to see the program continue next summer. “We hope to have many more years on the Playground!”