As the beaming cast of The Lightning Thief returned to the stage to take a bow on Thursday night after their performance, it was clear West Valley Youth Theater’s summer 2023 season was in full swing. The line-up includes four full-scale productions: Disney’s The Aristocats Kids, Mean Girls Jr., The Lightning Thief, and Rent. In contrast to other theater groups, WVYT not only offers summer-long productions but also productions with day-camp-style rehearsals. Each show is backed by a rock music score.
This June, WVYT’s team of dedicated staff members worked to put on two camp shows in Leigh High School’s Theater. Bay Area children aged 7-11 performed in The Aristocats Kids, which rehearsed from 9am-3pm for 10 days. Each day, staff worked with the children, teaching choreography, vocals, blocking and general theater skills. In addition to directly rehearsing for their performance, campers engaged in group games and crafts. Each child decorated a hand-made foam instrument, which kids danced with while they performed the song Everybody Wants to Be a Cat.
“As someone who grew up doing WVYT and really benefited from it, it was amazing to be able to provide an intro to musical theater to these kids, especially the ones who were performing for the very first time,” said Tommy Wilkens, the 2023 Los Gatos High School graduate who directed the show. “I think that the production quality, scale of Leigh High School’s theater, and the resources that we had access to this year were great for the kids because they helped them have a unique, memorable experience.”
At the same time, 11-14-year-olds were hard at work preparing for their performance of Mean Girls Jr. Even though they only had three weeks to patch the show together, the campers showcased immense dedication, challenging themselves to conquer difficult choreography.
“What I really like about coming back to WVYT is that this is somewhere where I learned a lot of things as a young person,” choreographer Katarina Kelly explained. “It’s really special to be able to come back with lots of new ideas that I’ve learned from going to college and to be able to give it back to kids who I see myself in.” She added she loves watching the students grow throughout the process. It was inspiring, she said, to see how they managed to “take something that was hard for them at the beginning and really be able to execute it well by the end of the process.”
Meanwhile, WVYT has been busy with rehearsals for its summer-long productions, which are both directed by the artistic director, Heather Stokes. Performers age 9-15 have been readying The Lightning Thief for Leigh High School’s stage. Based on Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson novels, the Lightning Thief follows the journey of three friends as they search for Zeus’s missing lightning bolt and attempt to maintain peace among the Greek gods. This Greek mythology musical features lovely ballads while also incorporating angsty music and action-packed battles.
The final show of this summer’s season is Rent, which boasts a cast of local high schoolers as well as recent high school graduates. Written and composed by Johnathan Larson, Rent tells the story of a group of friends struggling to make a living in New York City. As they combat the hardships of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, they learn to cherish each other for who they are.
Although The Aristocats Kids and Mean Girls Jr. are already in the books, tickets for The Lightning Thief and Rent are still available at wvyt.org/tickets, so be sure to stop by. The Lightning Thief performs July 13-16, and Rent performances are July 20, 21, 22 and 23.
And keep an eye out for more WVYT productions in the days ahead, as the company continues to expand to work with additional Bay Area schools.
