Nearly 30 members of Coolspring Elementary School’s Drama Club got to explore theatre production firsthand during the Footlight Players’ last musical, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown!”
After the final bows, students went behind the scenes to see how the set for “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown!” was put together and learned a little bit about how Footlight runs the technical aspects of its productions.
“They enjoyed the interaction with the cast during the performance and getting to go on stage after the show for pictures with the cast,” said Becky Tiedeman, the club’s leader. “They were eager to compare the acting space at Footlight to Elston (Middle School), their ‘home’ stage.”
As a bonus, the students got to surprise one of the club’s longtime volunteers, Michigan City High School grad Hillary Havlin, who starred as Patty. Havlin has volunteered with the Coolspring Drama Club's since its first production on the Elston stage in 2004, “The Wizard of Oz,” in which she starred as Dorothy.
Tiedeman said that for many students, it was the first and perhaps only time they have been able to see a live Broadway musical. “To me, it was the perfect opportunity to introduce them to community theatre,” she said.
The experience opened her students’ eyes to all the acting possibilities available in their town outside of school, Tiedeman said. “My 5th graders are always so sad at their last performance because they hate to give up the stage,” she said. “Many are now looking at local community theatre as a way to continue to act.”
Footlight Theatre, 1705 Franklin St., welcomes any group of 20 or more people to attend its productions at a discounted price and explore how they are produced. The theatre stages several plays and musicals each season. Please call (219) 874-4035 or visit footlightplayers.org for more information.