KC Cares: American Theatre Guild guides young thespians to the next stage

Cast member Nico DiPrimio teaches students from the South Kansas City Performing Arts Academy choreography from ‘Mamma Mia’ as part of the Staging the Future program. // Photo courtesy of Ali Nassir

To imagine a career in the theater, first, you need access to actually see shows and possibly interact with the people who already do the work. That connection is exactly what The American Theatre Guild’s Staging The Future program provides.

When a touring Broadway show comes to town, the guild arranges free tickets for both students at Title I schools and others with low incomes or special needs.

“At the heart of our mission is providing access to underserved community members and youth. We feel that the arts and exposure to it are so important because it fosters creativity and has an impact on communities from a cultural perspective,” the American Theatre Guild’s Associate Vice President of Development and Community Relations Elaine Stolze says.

But the tickets are just the beginning. Schools can apply to have a talkback session with performers or even get a master class in some aspect of the production.

“We had a coaching session with some of the kids, where they were working on a piece at school, and so they would perform in front of the cast members, and the cast members would provide just some suggestions, mentoring, and feedback to help them enhance their performances,” Stolze says.

The coaching varies on topics, focusing on techniques like stage presence or character development.

South Kansas City Performing Arts Academy, which has students from Ruskin, Grandview, and Center high schools, has taken up this opportunity to participate in Staging The Future.

Staging The Future Facilitator Kelly Michale says her program provides advanced theater classes for its students, and she’s always looking for real-world learning opportunities to provide them with local theaters and beyond.

“Even when I was a student, I was the type of student I learned more by doing versus just hearing, and that’s what this is,” Michale says.

Practicing what Michale preaches, in one session, the kids learned the choreography for a dance in the touring production of “Mamma Mia.”

“They were able to just learn segments and what it takes to put on a show and the training that is required, the physical capability that’s required, to learn choreography. They actually learned ‘Dancing Queen’ in an hour, and it was just pretty darn amazing how these kids were able to respond to the coaching and to learn the steps so quickly,” Stolze says.

The initiative is not just focused on performers either—The techies get support from the program too. There’s in-person and remote classes for students to learn about sound, light, set design, and more, covering just about any theater career. Crew members from “Les Miserables” came and spoke with the academy’s students about the many different types of jobs available and what they entail.

“We stress we feel there’s a place for everyone in the arts. You just have to figure out how to utilize your talents,” Stolze says.

Having professionals speak and work with the kids can make a bigger impression than just hearing their regular teachers relay similar information.

“To hear from actual professionals that are doing this on Broadway tours, to them, is something phenomenal that they get to hear evaluations and critiques that they can take with them to their auditions,” Michale says.

She also sees the value in creating personal connections with the various performers and crew members.

“You might be meeting with someone today who’s on a Broadway tour of To Kill a Mockingbird and maybe five years from now you might be in New York auditioning for a show, and they might be sitting there at that table as the director or one of the people that remembers you from that day you did that masterclass in Kansas City,” Michale says.

Usually, these events take place at the schools, because transportation can be an issue. Not every touring production has a class, but Staging the Future tries to at least provide some tickets to the performances. Michale says her students participated in Staging The Future events for Girl From the North Country, Mamma Mia, Clue, and To Kill a Mockingbird last school year and also got tickets to MJ the Musical and Moulin Rouge.

The program seems to be leaving a mark, as several students have already taken the knowledge they’ve gained from the program and applied it to their post-high school plans.

Some are “realizing maybe they should readjust their plans and focus more on, ‘Instead of being the Broadway star, I want to be the choreographer or my focus is more on the technical aspect of something,’ and realigning goals based on where their skill set is, because of how much more they’ve been able to focus on what they truly love to do. A lot of people don’t do that until many years after high school,” Michale says.

Stolze estimates that 2,400 people got to participate in some aspect of Staging The Future locally last season. Although the guild is based in Kansas City, it offers this program in 13 markets across the country.

For more information on contributing to or participating in Staging The Future, go to americantheatreguild.com/get-involved.