The Shanachie STARS is a weekly performing arts school, based within the Shanachie Theater, for children aged between six and sixteen, where they can learn to perform through singing, dancing, and acting under the tutelage of respected professionals within each field.

The semesters run concurrent with the school calendar, from September to June, with time off for school holidays. Classes take place each Saturday morning, from 9:00 a.m. until 12:00 noon.

Classes are split into two age appropriate groups, where young people learn new skills in each of the complementary Musical Theater disciplines of singing, dancing & drama. We nurture the shy and apprehensive, until they find their feet and voice, whilst at the same time developing and channeling those with bundles of talent, confidence and energy. Every child has the potential to do something wonderful with their own thoughts and actions, and we aim to help them develop that potential as they grow.

Each child who attends STARS is also considered a member of the Shanachie Theater Company, and should children's roles present themselves, will be given the opportunity to audition, if they would like to perform with the Company itself. In addition, depending on the theater schedule, there may be a performance by STARS at the end of the school year, where the children can show off to parents and families what they have learned during the year.

Our teachers have volunteered their time and energy with great enthusiasm, and look forward to each and every session with our amazingly talented young people.

Acting Coach - Jonathan Granger
https://i.imgur.com/MuBpvk0.jpg

Singing Coach - Kaylee Bennett
https://i.imgur.com/lqwakUl.jpg

Dancing Coach - Mataya De Luca
https://i.imgur.com/cMkKJg3.jpg

((Now for the OOC gubbins ....this is going to be a mainly vapored deal, open to all children characters, be they PC or NPC. Anyone with a character who will be attending, please drop us a PM with the name/s and age/s, so we can put together a roll call of who is taking part. We hope people enjoy it!))

An Acting Icebreaker a sample lesson, "What Are You Doing?" with Guest Coach Yas

At the beginning of her little lesson, Yasmin had the kids sit with her on stage. As was scheduled, she worked with the elder group first, then the younger group. She had them sit on the floor in a half circle with their backs to the audience while she faced them. When she would trade places with the kids later, she wanted to make sure that the one "performing" would be facing out, subtly building up their confidence to perform facing the audience.

When she spoke to the younger group, she appeared in her fun bold sky blue skin color and wild, short white hair, wearing a short white dress, hot pink leggings, and white go go boots. As energetic as ever, she spoke with a slightly higher tone than her normal radio voice, similar to the over-eager children's show actors. But when she spoke to the elder kids, she appeared in her Caucasian skin with a platinum blonde pixie cut, wearing a simple white t-shirt, dark acid washed blue jeans, and black ballet flats. She spoke to them with a frank tone, in her more normal voice, but her message to both was the same.

"Hey. You may know me as DJ Zazzy Yas, or some of you may just know me as Yas from working with me here on stage. You probably already know a lot about me, but I want to share with you something not a lot of people know about me....I get scared."

"I'm scared every time I go on the air on the radio. I'm afraid that people won't laugh at my jokes. I'm scared every time I walk out on stage. I'm afraid that I will be boring and the audience won't like me. But it took me awhile to understand - It's ok to be scared. Everyone can get scared and nervous before they perform. It's what you do with that scary feeling that can help you, or hurt you. If you let that fear overwhelm you, you won't be able to be your character. You won't even be able to be you."

"I have been told that the best thing I could do is to feel comfortable on stage, but you don't. I certainly don't always feel comfortable. I feel nervous right now talking to you." She paused before continuing, "But I don't show it, do I" No, there is a lot to be said for the motto "Fake it "til you make it." If I act comfortable, you think I am comfortable, even though I'm terrified. And that's what our little game is going to be about today."

"I like to call this game "What are you doing?" I will start so I can show you how it works, then we will move down the line," she said while pointing to the child at the beginning of the left of the semi-circle, then carrying her finger around until she reached the other end.

"I would say to the person before me, "What are you doing?" and they might respond, "I'm jumping rope." Now I have to go into the circle and start pretending to jump rope." She started jumping up and down in place, swinging her forearms in wide circles, and having her hands balled into small fists as if holding onto the rope handles. She continued jumping as she said, "And you all will ask me, "What are you doing?""

"What are you doing?" Most of the kids replied, meekly.

Still jumping Yas replied, "I can't hear you over my rope hitting the floor..."

"What are you doing?" The kids responded more loudly.

With a smile and still jumping, she replied proudly and confidently, "I'm rowing a boat!" There were a few scoffs and hushed laughs.

She stopped jumping and looked to the first kid. "Now you come up and act like you're rowing a boat, then you will have to tell us what you are really doing," she said with a wink, going to sit in his spot. The boy came up into the center of the half circle and began bringing his arms up and out, positioning one hand under the other, as if holding a large paddle. He brought his arms down and back as if rowing. "Perfect!" Yas continued, "And together, we all ask "What...?" She smiled again as they spoke loudly and in unison...

"What are you doing??

First Lesson

"For those of you who don't know me, my name is Jonathan Granger, but that's a bit of a mouthful, so you can all call me Jon. I'm here to teach you all how to act. Now, acting isn't as hard as you might think. In fact, I'm willing to bet you've all done a bit of acting already at some point in your lives. For example, have any of you ever pretended to be sad or angry or upset, just to get your own way?" Jon waited to see if any of the six children seated on the floor in a semi-circle around him would be brave enough to raise a hand. "Oh, come now. No need to be shy. I'm not going to rat any of you out to your parents."

A few tentative hands rose in the air, and Jon smiled. There was a method to his madness, after all. "Good!" he exclaimed. "It doesn't matter what you did or why or whether it was successful or not. What I'm saying is, that's acting! It's as simple as that. Now, I'm sure all of you have played Let's Pretend at one point or another. That's acting, too! It's a kind of acting called improvisation. I know that's a big word, and I don't expect you to remember it. All it means is acting, but without a script. That's what we're going to do here today. Improvise!"

He watched as the faces in front of him lit up with interest, a few of them scuttling closer, as if they were impatient to have a go at this improvisation thing. "Now, I'm sure you all know the story of Little Red Riding Hood, am I right?"

Six young heads bobbed in affirmation.

"Good! What we're going to do is Play Pretend - or improvise - to tell the story of Little Red Riding Hood. First, we'll choose parts, and then you're all going to tell the story together. Whatever part you get, you're going to pretend to be that character."

One hand rose that belonged to a very familiar face, one that made her home at Maple Grove.

"Yes, Daisy?" Jon acknowledged the little girl.

"Rick is the only boy. Does that mean he'll have to play the Wolf and the Huntsman?" she asked, curiously.

"Good question!" Jon praised her with a smile. "Acting is about pretending to be someone else. Obviously, none of you are really a wolf or a hunter or a grandma, but you don't have to be! That's what makeup and costumes are for. The rest is all acting or playing pretend."

"Are we going to wear makeup and costumes today?" another student asked, curiously.

"No, not today," Jon replied. "Today is just about having fun. But later on, we're going to pick a skit or two to perform for your families, and we'll have costumes for that. The hardest part about acting is learning your lines, but we're not going to worry about that today either because today we are ..." Jon paused a moment before giving them their cue. "Impro ...?"

"IMPROVISING!" they all shouted at once.

Jon beamed a delighted smile back at them as he climbed to his feet. "Awesome! Now ..." he said, grabbing hold of a paper bag that held six folded up slips of paper. "We're going to choose parts. Remember, this is just for fun, so no matter what part you get, there's no trading!"

Once all the parts were chosen, the whining ensued. After all, only one of them could play Red, and someone had to play the Wolf, though Jon was pretty sure they'd find playing the villain was just as much, if not more fun as playing the hero.

Somehow, he managed to calm them all down, and the real fun began. It was interesting to see them become the different parts, and once they got the feel for what they were doing, all he had to do was sit back and watch and make sure nothing got out of hand. They were still young enough that this came pretty easy to them all.

He had presented the older group with a similar lesson a short time ago, though he'd given them a more challenging skit to play with.

All in all, he thought the first lesson had gone well for both groups. He just might make actors of them all yet!

February-April Semester 2016

Ages 11 - 16 Felicity Storm Thom Garland Doran Ilnaren Laurel Wystren Robert Mallory

Ages 6 - 10 Margaret Lassiter Lila Granger Mairead Harker Alexei Storm Catie Harker Rick Harker Daisy Marlowe

Order of classes

The younger group start with one hour of dance, followed by one hour of drama, and finishing with an hour of singing.

The elder group start with drama, followed by singing, and finishing with dance.

There is a short break between the second and third hours for light snacks and drinks.

((If you would like your character or NPC child either added or removed to the list, please drop me a PM! If you'd like someone added, also include the child's age!))

April-July Semester 2016

Ages 11 - 16 Felicity Storm Thom Garland Doran Ilnaren Laurel Wystren Robert Mallory

Ages 6 - 10 Margaret Lassiter Lila Granger Zahan Anderson Mairead Harker Alexei Storm Catie Harker Rick Harker Daisy Marlowe

Order of classes

The younger group start with one hour of dance, followed by one hour of drama, and finishing with an hour of singing.

The elder group start with drama, followed by singing, and finishing with dance.

There is a short break between the second and third hours for light snacks and drinks.

((If you would like your character or NPC child either added or removed to the list, please drop me a PM! If you'd like someone added, also include the child's age!))

And so the last STARS season of 2016 comes to a close!

There will be no independent show performed by the STARS this semester - they're working full time for the Shanachie Theater in the last show of the year, The Nutcracker.

Families may reserve up to five tickets free over the course of the run (to be redeemed for one show, or several), and further tickets will be offered at one third the usual price for family members who wish to see the show above and beyond that number. The STARS will be supervised backstage by the Shanachie Ballet professionals, who are absolutely delighted with them.

And don't forget, it's never a bad time of year to reserve a place in the STARS for your child! The new semester will begin on January 7th, 2017 - plenty of time to get your name on the list!

September-December Semester 2017

Please note - Miranda Granger-Bennett will be giving a series of guest lectures on costume design this semester.

Ages 11 - 16 Thom Garland Doran Ilnaren Matt Foster Cassiopeia Delaney Penny Robert Mallory Margaret Lassiter Lila Granger Zahan Granger

Ages 6 - 10 Mairead Harker Alexei Storm Catie Harker Rick Harker Daisy Marlowe Martin Rogers Lianne Rogers

Order of classes

The younger group start with one hour of dance, followed by one hour of drama, and finishing with an hour of singing.

The elder group start with drama, followed by singing, and finishing with dance.

There is a short break between the second and third hours for light snacks and drinks. ((If you would like your character or NPC child either added or removed to the list, please drop me a PM! If you'd like someone added, also include the child's age!))

September-December Semester 2018

Ages 11 - 16 Eluari D'Meron Thom Garland Doran Ilnaren Robert Mallory Penny Margaret Lassiter Lila Granger Zahan Granger Mairead Harker

Ages 6 - 10 Alexei Storm Catie Harker Rick Harker Daisy Marlowe Lyneth Granger Peter Radcliffe Beatrice Granger Martin Granger Lianne Granger

Order of classes

The younger group start with one hour of dance, followed by one hour of drama, and finishing with an hour of singing.

The elder group start with drama, followed by singing, and finishing with dance.

There is a short break between the second and third hours for light snacks and drinks.

((If you would like your character or NPC child either added to or removed from the list, please drop me a PM! If you'd like someone added, also include the child's age!))

STARS Student Roster
September 2019 - June 2020


Ages 11 - 16

Beatrice Granger
Catie  Harker
Lila Granger
Mairead Harker
Margaret Lassiter
Martin Rogers
Rick Harker
Robert Mallory
Zahan Granger

Ages 6 - 10

Abby Fenner
Alexei  Storm
Caleb Lassiter
Daisy Granger
Emily Granger
Lianne Rogers
Lilly Montoya-Drumroldie
Lyneth Granger
Madison Fenner
Peter Radcliffe

Order of Classes

The younger group starts with one hour of dance, followed by one hour of drama, and finishing with an hour of singing.

The elder group starts with drama, followed by singing, and finishing with dance.

There is a short break between the second and third hours for light snacks and drinks.

The semesters run concurrent with the school calendar, from September to June, with time off for school holidays. Students will occasionally be called upon to perform in productions at the Shanachie Theater, and depending on the theater schedule, there may be an additional show performed by STARS at the end of the school year.

((If you would like your PC or NPC child either added to or removed from the list, please drop me or Mataya a PM with the character's name and age. Have fun!))