YOUNG ARTISTS ENSEMBLE AUDITIONING FOR UPCOMING FAMILY THEATER SEASON

You can have your name on a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, but first you have to do what all great actors do: Practice, practice, practice. Youngsters are learning their trade by performing with Young Artists Ensemble in the beautiful Hillcrest Center for the Arts in Thousand Oaks. These young people come from all over the region, many from the San Fernando Valley.

Up next for these young people is The Sound of the Music directed by a Young Artists Ensemble alumnus, Michael Fischer. Michael also writes original works and directs often for YAE. He is assisted in this production by music director Susan T. Calkins and a live orchestra made up of young people ages 10 – 19.

Sound of Music is part of YAE’s 2014-15 Family Theatre Season which also includes Disney’s Aladdin, Jr. and Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. All performances are held in the beautiful and versatile Main Theatre at the Hillcrest Center for the Arts, 403 West Hillcrest Drive. Performances for THE SOUND OF MUSIC are November 7 - 23, 2014, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays at 2:00 p.m.

THE SOUND OF MUSIC is based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers, with music by Richard Rodgers, Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. A family favorite for every generation, this is the beloved true tale of Maria. This would-be nun instead realizes she has found that some of her “Favorite Things” are the lovely children and lonely widower of the Von Trapp family. The story takes them through their famous escape out of Nazi-occupied Austria.

You can purchase tickets to the entire season or single show tickets for the SOUND OF MUSIC at $17 for adults and $16 for children, students and seniors. There is no service charge for any tickets and ordering is as easy as calling 805-381-1246 or going online at www.yaeonline.com. And if you have a family the size of the Von Trapps, you can receive a 10% discount for groups of ten or more for a single performance. Call (805) 381-2747 or visit www.yaeonline.com if you have any questions.

The next production of the season will be Disney‘s Aladdin, Jr. performing January 30 - February 15, 2015. This production holds performances on an additional weekend (February 20-22, 2015) as part of the next award-winning Conejo Theatre For Everyone. Conejo Theatre for Everyone combines the efforts of the Conejo Recreation and Park District’s Therapeutic Recreation Unit and Young Artists Ensemble to feature disabled and non-disabled performers in a unique theatre experience. This means some roles in Disney’s Aladdin, Jr. will be double-cast with special needs members of the Therapeutics Community for the final, extra weekend. Performers in these double cast roles will act as actor-mentors assisting their counterparts to great performances.

Auditions for Disney’s Aladdin, Jr. will be coming up and young hopefuls should keep their eyes on this site for the dates.

Magic, mayhem, and music follow young Aladdin everywhere after he discovers a rather gregarious genie in a lamp. Family audiences can join Aladdin on his fantastical journey from street rat to prince as he encounters Jasmine, Jafar, Iago, a Magic Carpet, and a slew of other madcap characters.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be presented May 1-17, 2015 as YAE takes on its very first Shakespeare and will be directed by YAE’s own Megan McDonough. This fairy story is also a love story that follows four teens and a ragtag band of wanna-be actors into the woods one midsummer night. There they encounter meddling, mischievous, and magical fairies, weaving four stories into one.

Young Artists Ensemble has received many accolades in the past 34 years including the Encore Statue Award from the City of Thousand Oaks for Excellence in the Arts, and Best Innovative Program 2011, Large District from the California Association of Recreation and Park Districts. Most recently, it received top honors in the National Youth Arts Awards for the 2013 Teen Summer Musical 42nd STREET and for its innovative Conejo Theatre for Everyone production of THE HOBBIT.

THE SOUND OF MUSIC is recommended for all ages, of course, and for anyone who wants to see Young Artists Ensemble’s good work that continues year-round.

Photo credit: Paul Cranmer

Back row: left to right - Marissa Margolis as Marta, Micah Meyers as Kurt, Lilly Thompson as Gretl.

Front row: left to right - Lyrissa Leininger as Liesel, Max Meyers as Friedrich, Allison Martinez as Louisa, Jessica Wallace as Brigitta.