'Madagascar' to come to Encore stage
Apr. 12—LIMA — Over 70 performers of all ages auditioned for parts in the Encore Theatre's upcoming production of "Madagascar: A Musical Adventure Jr." and performers ranging from the second to 12th grade will take the stage to bring to life the characters of Marty the zebra, Alex the lion, Gloria the hippo and Melman the giraffe in three shows this weekend.
"We have an all-star cast of 33 students from area schools who are doing an amazing job," Kristin Lee, who directs the play, said. "So many of them are seasoned. It's amazing how many things they have under their belt already as young performers and for some, this will be their first show, so it's a really diverse cast of talents with a lot of energy. it has been a great experience so far."
Lee said that the show is a "high-energy musical extravaganza" based on the 2005 Dreamworks animated film and that it is about one hour long and for all ages.
"It's definitely something that has a lot of color and excitement and movement," she said. "The music is very catchy. It will have you humming the songs all the way home."
But above all, what Lee wants the audience to take away from the shows is simple.
"I would love them to take away the immense amount of talent in our area students and how important the arts are to them," she said. "We're so proud that they're able to share their talents with the community and hopefully encourage other kids and students in the area to become involved in theatre because that is something that you can never take away from somebody. Theatre is a skill that you can do for your entire life and it's such a wonderful expression of an art form. It's just good for people all around to participate in live theatre because it's something you just can't get from anything else."
Tickets for the show, which runs at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, are available on the Encore Theatre website.
IF YOU GO
WHAT: "Madagascar: A Musical Adventure Jr."
WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday
WHERE: Encore Theatre, 991 North Shore Drive, Lima.
Tickets are $5 for age 10 and under and $10 for all other tickets. Tickets can be purchased at http://www.amiltellers.org.
Reach Jacob Espinosa at 567-242-0399.
