Staged fun in the summertime
Published on July 31st, 2002
STONEHAM, MA - The stars are shining bright in the Auditorium at the Stoneham Town Hall as the summer drama program, sponsored by the Stoneham Youth Commission, plans to put on a production of “Fame.”
The kids have been practicing their lines and dance steps, painting set backdrops and a makeshift stretch limo, and exorcising the last few performance butterflies from their stomachs for three weeks, and the show is scheduled to go on Wednesday, August 7 at 7:15 p.m at the Stoneham Town Hall.
“They are so talented and dedicated, and there’s a lot of stories behind some of these kids,” said drama director and Stoneham Middle School seventh grade teacher Linda Lamm. “You have your students that are very, very successful at school and academics, which is wonderful, and then you can have the kids who really achieve in drama and performing. The kids that memorize all of their lines, and really break out of their shells by performing and being involved.”
The summer program is offered to budding Stoneham thespians between the ages of 11-15, and Lamm is aided by several paid high school assistants. The program introduces the elementary and middle school aged children to the joys of performing and the rigors of rehearsal, and gives them a good handle on the Drama Club experience at Stoneham High School.
“I’ve been doing this for the last four or five summers, and it really got me into the world of drama,” said incoming Stoneham High freshman and aspiring screenwriter Mike Testa. “You get to meet other kids who are interested in the same things that you are, and you get to try out singing, dancing and acting.”
Testa will be performing a medley of Paul McCartney and Beatles songs for the show, as Lamm has made some alterations to the original play. A portion of the show will be devoted to the kids getting out of a makeshift white stretch limo, and dressing up and performing as famous celebrities.
The drama program offers a little variety to the idling kids during the dog days of summer vacation, and acts as perfect complement to the ample amount of summer sports leagues.
“This program really works well within the frameworks of what we try to do at the Youth Commission,” said Youth Com-mission Director Christine DelRossi. “I come down and see the kids working on numerous projects to build sets and get ready for the show, and it’s great to see them working so well together.”
“I think it’s really a bonus for the families that there is a show in August to celebrate their hard work and commitment,” added DelRossi.
According to Lamm, the program wouldn’t be possible without the enthusiasm of the kids, and the help of kids like Stoneham High Junior Danny Powers. Powers came up with the design for the cardboard “limo” that will cart the “stars” around the stage during the show, and also plays a prominent part in the shows lighting.
“I really don’t get into the performing aspect of the show, but I really the technical and designing parts of making a show come to life,” said Powers, who has been involved with the show for the last six years. “We tried to build a car like this in the past, but it just kept falling apart. I decided to build the body on a wooden platform, and two days later we had our limo.”
As is the case with many summer activities, some of the kids will never get to view the fruits of their summer labor. Powers left for vacation on Cape Cod at the end of last week, and won’t see his work in action.
“Danny has worked so hard for me, and been with the program for so long, and I just really want to give him his just credit,” said Lamm, who is producing her eighth summer play in Stoneham. “He’s one of the anchors behind this entire production.”
The show will go on without the vacationing kids, and Lamm hopes the children take many lessons back from their summer on stage.
“What we do in the classroom certainly carries over into the play,” said Lamm. “If we’re doing a 1920’s play, then we’re learning the history of New York in the 1920’s.”
“The kids gain reading comprehension through reading the play and memorizing lines, and interpreting characters and plots,” added Lamm. “The most important aspect of the entire program is that the students are involved, and they are always encouraged to give me input about the direction of the show. These kids form a very tight, very supportive social group.”
The tightness of the group was typified by Stoneham High freshman Betsy Higer, and her reaction to new kids joining the program.
“As one of the older kids, it’s really up to me to approach the more quiet kids, and tell them that it’s okay to get up and speak,” said Higer. “We try to help them bust out of their shells, and then, by the end, you can’t get them to stop talking.”
“Fame” will be performed at the Stoneham Town Hall Auditorium on Wednesday, August 7 at 7:15 p.m., and an afternoon dress rehearsal is scheduled for family members and attendees that can’t make the evening show.
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