ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, June 28, 1996 TAG: 9606280014
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG
SOURCE: KATHY LU STAFF WRITER
At one point, the great hall at the Christ Episcopal Church was dubbed "Museum KidScene" and it featured living statues with names like "Mad Person," "Eating Sunbather" and "Do You Like Your Waitress?"
As about half of the 21 barefoot children toured the "museum" introducing their work, the other half wobbled as they tried to hold the positions they were sculpted into.
It is one of many games that the children play during KidScene, a summer theater workshop directed by Alice Wheeler, a rising senior theater arts major at Virginia Tech. The activities try to encourage the children's imagination and creativity.
"This is something I really wanted to do and I was tired of having no opportunities so I made one of my own," Wheeler said. "The community really wanted this and I've had way more interest than I could possibly take care of."
The children's ages range between 8 and 13, but all are equally interested in the class. At least 15 of the 21 students there June 20 talked about how much fun the class was.
"We get the opportunity to do what we want and choose the games we want to play," Joey Rees, 8, said. "But I'm way behind in memorizing and practicing my lines."
Rees' concern echoed those of his classmates, who all have parts in the upcoming performance of "Treasure Island" and "Mrs. Pigglewiggle" Saturday at the Squires Center Studio Theater.
"I like that [Wheeler] doesn't just give older kids the big parts, everyone has parts," Maggie O'Brien, 10, said. She plays Morgan in "Treasure Island."
Nick Grene, 10, actually postponed going to baseball camp for a week because of KidScene, which surprised his mother, Ruth Alscher.
"I think this is really effective in getting children to work together and be real imaginative, even for someone real shy like Nick," she said. "It also hooks the kids into reading and focusing. I think the only disadvantage is that it's only [from 9 to 12] in the morning."
Freyja Bergthorson said her 7-year-old daughter, Kristine Workman, is always eager to get up in the morning and get to class, even though it's summer.
But for Melly Jacobs, 9, getting up early isn't always so easy.
"It's hard to get up because it's summer, and we're supposed to sleep late," she said. "But I still like it. And if I wasn't doing this, I'd be stuck at home with my sister."
Wheeler is holding two three-week sessions - one in June and one in July - with 22 children in each session (July's enrollment already has been filled). Wheeler said she had trouble finding the space to hold the workshop until the church offered its great hall.
"The parents were really supportive of the idea, but I had a terrible time finding funding from merchants so that I could rent a space for the summer," she said. "I finally found the Episcopal church that would let us do it. The church asked only that we leave whatever funds we had left over as a donation."
Wheeler is charging $45 a session, which covers juice, royalty fees, costumes, set pieces and a basic first-aid kit. She also has at least one helper with her every morning.
"It's completely exhausting, but very rewarding," Wheeler said. "The children are great once they are loosened up from the adult world."
Wheeler is graduating a semester early from Virginia Tech and is planning to work with a well-known children's theater in Kentucky to get some credibility.
"My ultimate goal is to find a small town in Appalachia with no theater and open one," she said. "I'd like to open a year-round theater program with plays done by adults for children during the school year and children's workshops and plays in the summer. I also hope to get involved with the schools, which have been stripping their theater arts program."
LENGTH: Medium: 80 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: LORA GORDON. While everyone else is either trying on orby CNBcreating their costume Nicole Joshi works on some modifications to
her own outfit. Nicole and the others are taking part in a summer
theatre program being taught by Virgnina
Tech theater arts major Alice Wheeler at Christ Episcopal Church in
Blacksburg. color.