[Free Lance-Star] Riverside takes live theater to Stafford schools

Cathy Dysons - Free Lance-Star

May 18, 2024

Pint-sized Broadway dreams begin on stages like Riverside Center for the Performing Arts. Thanks to a recent $7,500 grant from the Duff McDuff Green Jr. Fund of The Community Foundation, even more area youth can sing and dance in Riverside’s musical theater camps this summer at the arts center without worrying about the price tag.he Riverside Center for the Performing Arts recently took its show on the road to Stafford County schools as part of a new community outreach program.

Dorothy and the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion — the “Big Four” from “The Wizard of Oz,” Riverside’s next show — performed a condensed version of the classic, sang songs and took pictures with students at Falmouth, Conway and Anthony Burns elementary schools.

The visits were fun for cast members and students alike, according to Riverside officials, and even a little nostalgic for some adults in the audience.

“I couldn’t help but notice many of the teachers in attendance tearing up to ‘Somewhere over the Rainbow,’” said Susan Ingebretsen, Riverside’s community outreach chair.

The visits were just the start of Riverside’s new outreach program, made possible through the center’s newly acquired status as a 501©(3) nonprofit, said Patrick A’Hearn, producing artistic director. He’s been pursuing that designation, which most professional regional theaters across the country have, because it allows Riverside to get grants and donations that help the center do more community-oriented activities.

“I truly believe that the performing arts is essential to the health and well-being of a community,” he said, which includes exposing children who’ve never seen live theater to the wonders of a production. “The youth of today need to have as much of this as they possibly can because, the way I see it, they’re going to carry the torch.”

The show definitely “helped to ignite excitement for the arts,” said Sallie Burch, principal at Falmouth. “And the generosity of 40 free tickets? That was a game-changer.”

Each school got 40 tickets to give to students, and their families, who will be able to visit the Stafford County venue and be transported to the Emerald City. Schools plan to use the tickets during end-of-the year awards or, as Falmouth is doing, in a raffle with the theme, “Attendance Matters.”

Angie Formica, a third-grade teacher at Falmouth, said going to Riverside is a favorite date night for her and her husband, and she was excited that her class could enjoy the same experience.

“Very few of my students have been to a live theater production so this was such a treat,” she said. “After the performance, I asked my class how many would like to act on stage and at least half raised their hands.”

Kindergartners at Anthony Burns have been exploring elements of fictional stories such as characters, settings and plot, and the live performance enhanced what they’ve studied, said teacher Clementine Anderson.

“The performance captivated their attention, and they enthusiastically participated by laughing and singing along,” she said.

Riverside offered the visits to Title I elementary schools, those with the highest percentage of children from low-income families. Ingebretsen said she realized enrichment programs and field trips are difficult to plan, expensive to undertake and increasingly scarce in many schools.

“We also know how significant they can be in igniting performing arts interest or simply encouraging an appreciation of the arts in budding audiences,” she wrote in an email.

Riverside also is relaunching its popular Children’s Theater in October with the production of “Willy Wonka Jr.” The center expects to offer additional free tickets to children’s programming at the three schools already visited and to expand to others when possible.

“I really think it’s important that we cultivate the great talent that’s right in our backyard,” A’Hearn said.