When people think of a children’s theater production, they may not expect much. Premier Performance is dedicated to changing that.
The Chesterton-based professional children’s performing arts studio stages “The Wizard of Oz (Young Performers’ Edition)” Dec. 8-10 in its first production at Canterbury Theatre in Michigan City.
“Part of why we started Premier Performance is we wanted to do more with students,” said Keri Castro, who co-owns Premier Performance (www.premierperformance.org) with her husband, Daniel Castro.
“Daniel and I believe all you need to do is challenge the students. You just set the bar. They’ll keep going higher and higher. Some programs think, ‘It’s just kids. Let’s get up there and hope they know their lines.’
“We give them the energy. We give them the focus. I give them 150 percent in rehearsals. They give it back. They set the bar. They just want to do better and better. These students can absorb, believe it or not, these really complex acting concepts.”
A cast of 8- to 16-year-olds has taken on the one-hour, age-appropriate version of the classic musical “The Wizard of Oz.”
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“It has all of the same characters. It’s basically the same story but just compact,” said Keri Castro, who co-directs “The Wizard of Oz (Young Performers’ Edition)” with her husband, a Portage native.
“We’re doing a twist to it. When Dorothy goes over the rainbow, that can be set anywhere. We’re setting it in a punk rock-anime land. We work with Brian Leavitt and he designs all of these beautiful, hand-painted, giant paintings. His aesthetic is very punk rock.”
Castro added that the Chesterton set designer and scenic painter’s cool illustrative punk art pairs well with the costuming for “The Wizard of Oz (Young Performers’ Edition).”
Students involved in the production come from several Duneland-area schools including Chesterton Middle School, Chesterton High School, Liberty Elementary School in Chesterton and Marquette Catholic High School in Michigan City.
The cast also includes residents of Crown Point, LaPorte, Portage and Valparaiso.
“The full-scale production gives them the opportunity to shine on stage. I’m not feeding them their lines,” said Keri Castro, of Chesterton.
“Every show that we do they get better and better. We started out with our very first show in 2012. This is pretty cool to see that we still have some of the original students. Seeing them now years later and how they’ve grown, they have become leaders, which is our big goal.
“Not every kid is going to be in theater for a career. We know that. Students have to be able to talk confidently. We’re trying to instill leadership qualities and confidence. These are incredible kids on the stage.”
Keri Castro, who works with the children and handles staging, earned music and theater degrees from Oklahoma Baptist University and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy while her husband, who concentrates on choreography and movement, is a music theater graduate of Columbia College Chicago.
“Both of us are working professionals in music theater. We both have worked professionally throughout the United States,” said Keri Castro, noting that the couple worked on a cruise ship for seven months after getting married and then decided to start a business to give back to the community.
“Ultimately we’re looking to have our own home for productions. That’s our big dream. We try to be different and we try to create really powerful performances.”
Jessi Virtusio is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
‘The Wizard of Oz (Young Performers’ Edition)’
When: 7 p.m. Dec. 8-9; 3 p.m. Dec. 9-10
Where: Canterbury Theatre, 807 Franklin St., Michigan City
Tickets: $12-$15
Information: 219-841-2266; www.canterburytheatre.org