Theater for children reaches local schools for fourth year

MONTROSE  —  Principal Dave Finley’s goal at Johnson Elementary is to create a literacy-rich environment for his students and a visit from a local theater group assisted in his mission.

The four-year Magic Circle Players Theatre for Children program picks one play a year to perform at area schools in the fall, along with providing two children’ productions at the Magic Circle Theatre.

Friday was the three-member cast’s debut of “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” in front of its young audience. Over the next several weeks, the group will be performing at all Montrose County School District Re-1J elementary schools.

“(Theater) is part of an expression, understanding and sensitivity vital for children to develop — it’s literacy,” said Marge McCarty, a retired music teacher who plays the jealous queen.

The production follows the famous story of Snow White and director Katie Wyatt said she didn’t change much to accommodate the audience. She choose the play because of the small three-member cast and its 30-minute length.

“It’s clever and well written,” Wyatt said.

Snow White is played by Chris Boyce, who has acted in Magic Circle productions before. She recently performed in “Crazy for You.”

The male characters, including a dwarf, the magic mirror, and guard, are played by Rick Chapman, who was also cast in “Crazy for You.”

It’s Chapman’s first time in front of a young audience and he said the challenge is working with the kids and having them involved in the production too.

“And not to lose control,” he said. “There is a lot of energy out there.”

The highlight of the show is when students get to participate. Throughout the performance, Boyce, Chapman and McCarty interact with the children, asking them questions and bring them on stage as characters.

“Doing lines and looking at the kids, it’s real to them,” Boyce said. “It’s so fun to see their faces.”

All the students participated by standing up and acting as trees so Snow White could hide from the evil queen.

McCarty said the whole idea is to get kids interested in the arts and teach them another side of literature.

 “It’s a neat way to get kids introduced to theater. It might be their first chance to see an actual (live) theater,” said Boyce.

The production creates a visual learning environment, linking expressions with language.

“This is an opportunity for (students) to learn a whole new vocabulary,” Finley said. “We need to flood kids with words.”

Contact Kati O’Hare via e-mail at katio@montrosepress.com