SPARC's August Adventure Camp (Photo by Katrina Boone)
[SCENE:] Daytime. The light is extinguished in the dark theater. Spotlights focus on the stage. The light footsteps of students are barely audible as they take their places and await their cues.
[CAMPER 1:] “Today we explore the art form that is acting.”
[CAMPER 2:] “And camerawork, editing, wardrobe and more.”
[END SCENE.]
With Central Virginia recently serving as a filming location for “Harriet,” “The Good Lord Bird” and “The Walking Dead: World Beyond,” more and more filmmakers are eyeing Richmond as a potential location for production. For youth interested in the industry, a great place to start or nurture their talents is in a theater or film camp. Here are a few summer programs offering courses that cultivate film industry skills.
CWorks 2019 Masters Camp students perform “Les Misérables School Edition.” (Photo courtesy Characterworks)
CharacterWorks
Masters Camp: Disney’s ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’
The goal at CharacterWorks is training kids in theater skills and building their confidence onstage. “We want to teach them skills they can use the rest of their life, as well as the value of [a] good work ethic and responsibility and commitment,” says Jacob Filegar, CWorks’ summer day camp director.
CWorks’ camps are theater-related, focusing on music, dance and drama with some games added in. “All of our camps work on putting together a show at the end of the camp,” Filegar says.
CWorks has five summer programs to meet the needs of families and the interests of students. They’re held at different locations in the metro area, with a focus on the West End of Richmond and Midlothian.
Approximately 500 kids participate in CWorks’ summer camps each year. “In the last two years, we have had a huge increase of 100 kids, which is exciting,” Filegar says.
Most of the kids that attend camp come back year after year. “That’s when you know you are doing something right,” he adds.
The capstone of CWorks’ summer camp program is the High School Masters Camp, held July 10-26 this year. The two-and-a-half-week performing arts program offers kids the chance to master musical theater skills.
During the final weekend of the Masters program, participants stage a musical at Henrico High School’s Center for the Arts. This year’s students will perform Disney’s “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.”
August Adventure Jr. campers performed “Seussical KIDS” in 2018. (Photo by Jim Hale)
SPARC
Bravo Jr., Bravo, Bravo Summer Company and Focus In
Each year, SPARC at 2106 N. Hamilton St. has about 1,000 kids participate in its performing arts camps. “For most of our camps, we have 30 to 40 kids per session,” says Paul Major, director of summer programming.
One of the most popular courses is the Bravo series. Campers start at age 9 or 10 in Bravo Jr., a four-week camp held June 15-July 10. They explore theatrical techniques, song, dance, visual art and more, all while crafting an original production using their own ideas.
Major says that many students continue from Bravo Jr. into Bravo camp for middle schoolers. Each day in the four-week Bravo camp is filled with performing arts activities. Held June 15-July 10, the final weeks of camp include a student-produced talent show as well as an original show.
Kids can advance to Bravo Summer Company, held June 15-July 10, for 14- to 18-year-olds. Teens get the chance to sharpen their skills in acting, music, dance and scriptwriting, working collaboratively to form their own ensemble company during the four-week camp.
“Many of our camp kids will also come for other training classes during the year,” Major says.
Kids interested in film often gravitate toward Focus In, a two-week camp for 10-to 14-year-olds, where they can work on a seven-minute feature and create other short independent projects. The camp, held July 13-24, gives them the opportunity to learn about the art of film from in front of and behind the camera. They premiere their movie at the end of the camp with a red-carpet moment.
“We are trying to use the performing arts as a tool to create confidence and creativity,” Major says. “We want to inspire students to express their feelings appropriately and use their voice for good.”
Summer 2018 campers work on their short film. (Photo courtesy Final Act Drama)
Final Act Drama
Acting and Movie Making
All the kids who want to be on camera in Final Act Drama’s camp can do so, says Russ Randall, who runs the program. “Everybody has the opportunity to perform.”
The two-week camp, held June 15-26, focuses on teaching kids the craft of acting for film and television. They also go through the process of creating a short film, from writing the script to focusing on costuming.
Students get a good understanding of the business of film. “We bring in industry professionals to spend time with them so they can hear stories from the set,” Randall says. “This year, we are expanding the content. A five-day turnaround [for past camps] has been tough.”
The camp, held at Richmond Christian School at 6511 Belmont Road in Chesterfield, is for kids from fourth to 12th grades. “Older kids typically take on bigger responsibilities, and they enjoy the experience,” Randall says.
Randall appreciates working with kids who want to be in the film industry. “We let students know what you need to do to be in this industry,” he says. “Being an actor is not an exclusive club. Anybody can do it if you develop your skills.”
Last summer, a group of campers produced a mockumentary called “The Baffled Braggarts.” (Photo courtesy VCU Department of Photography and Film)
VCUarts
Film
During VCU Arts’ film camp, held June 15-26, rising sixth to eighth graders are given a crash course in movie production at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Department of Photography and Film at 325 N. Harrison St. “It’s a cohort of 16, and it fills up quickly,” says VCU Arts Professor Sasha Waters Freyer. “Kids learn everything from soup to nuts. They have to think about staging, cinematography and writing.”
Students form groups of four and write, direct, act in and edit a film. On the final day of camp, friends and family get to see the finished films during a public screening.
The films and stories campers come up with are “wildly inventive and often funny,” Freyer says, adding that students film at different locations throughout the campus. “It helps them think of where their stories will take place. They often bring things from home like special props or crazy costumes, whatever they need to help them tell their story.”
Campers get immersed in the process and technology, she adds. “It helps promote our department at VCU, and that has been really positive.”
Henrico County Recreation and Parks
CenterStage Performing Arts
Each year Henrico County holds four sessions of two-week CenterStage Performing Arts camps for children ages 6 to 15. Each camp offers an overview of theater, dance, music, acting, improv, choreography and music. “We also touch on the production end as well,” says Amy Perdue, theater arts specialist for Henrico County Recreation and Parks. “Each camp is very age specific.” On the last day of camp, students hold a production for friends and family at The Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen.
This year, camps start June 22. “There are an awful lot of kids that love the arts, whether it’s the performance or production side,” Perdue says. “It’s something for them to try and see if it’s an avenue they want to explore.”
Virginia Rep’s Summer Showtime students staged four performances of “The Addams Family Young@Part” in 2019. (Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce)
Virginia Repertory Theatre
Stage Explorers and Summer Showtime
Virginia Repertory Theatre camps encourage and support kids who have never acted before, as well as youth who are seasoned performers. One of the theater’s most popular summer camps is Stage Explorers, a two-week camp held in June at The Children’s Theatre at Willow Lawn. The camp is geared to rising first through sixth graders. Each day includes drama, music, dance and a production craft taught by Virginia Rep’s theater professionals and educators.
“Campers are divided into three groups by grade level or age for the majority of their activities but come together in rehearsals for the showcase-style performance on the final day,” says Irene Kuykendall, Virginia Rep’s education manager.
Each child participating is seen, heard and encouraged to be “their zany self,” Kuykendall says.
Virginia Rep’s most intense summer offering is Summer Showtime, two, three-week camps held late July–August at the November Theatre at 114 W. Broad St. Students choose to participate in a musical, play or both, pending an audition. “We look for kids that want to commit to the rehearsal process and performances,” Kuykendall says. Play auditions were held in February, and musical auditions are March 1.
Campers will perform in four public performances per show at the November Theatre and Theatre Gym (also located at Virginia Rep). “It’s a full production with full lights, sound and costumes,” Kuykendall says.
During the camp, participants spend their time learning their lines as well as the music and choreography for the public performances.
Over the years, Virginia Rep has revised and refined its camps. “We are more focused on lengthening some of our camps and not overdoing it,” Kuykendall says.
Swift Creek Mill campers performed “Hairspray JR” in 2019. (Photo courtesy Swift Creek Mill Theatre)
Swift Creek Mill Theatre
Intro to Theatre, Improv and Musical Theatre
Swift Creek Mill Theatre at 17401 Jefferson Davis Highway has been expanding its offerings since hosting its first camp 20 years ago, and this year it features three one-week camps for kids ages 6 to 18. Each session has an enrollment of up to 35 campers.
The three programs include Intro to Theatre for ages 6 to 8, a half-day camp teaching the basics of theater, held June 15-19. “It’s mostly performance-based, getting them comfortable onstage,” says Steve Koehler, Swift Creek’s managing director. “We have never had camps for young kids, so this camp is brand new this year.”
Improv Camp, held June 22-26, gives kids and teens ages 9 to 18 the chance to grow and gain confidence as they learn improvisational acting techniques. During the all-day session, they work on building performance skills for the production on the last day of camp.
Musical Theatre, an all-day program also for ages 9 to 18, provides a broad introduction to musical theater, basic movement and theater technique. It runs July 6-10, with a student performance at the end of the week for parents.
Learning about and working in the arts “leads to all kinds of skill sets,” Koehler says. “Skills they learn include problem solving, thinking on your feet and doing presentations for an audience.”
Koehler says the camps can assist students with overcoming stage fright, and participating in the arts also helps students learn empathy and improve their reading comprehension. “It’s a life skill-building experience, and it’s fun,” he says.