[Nevertheless] Do Not Fear It's Just a Play

They had only five days in which to accomplish this tremendous feat.

Who in their right mind puts on an hour-long musical in a week five days? I always think of it in terms of a week, but it's not. It's just five days. 

Apparently Lorrie and Rob Gray from Children's Stage Adventures do. 

Auditions were on Monday. Rehearsals were Tuesday through Thursday, mixed in with myriad other camp activities. Dress Rehearsal AND the performance were on Friday. Nevertheless, they did it - Midsummer Dream, the one-hour musical, was fantastic! 

Two of my children performed in the play. Alia, age eleven, was Hippolyta and Coren, age thirteen, was Flute. If you don't know anything about the Midsummer Night's Dream story, Hippolyta is Queen of the Amazons, and having been defeated by Theseus, Duke of Athens, she is betrothed to him. Flute is a bellows-mender, a young man whose facial hair has just begun to grow ... he is also part of an acting troupe putting on a play for Hippolyta and Theseus. Flute plays the female role, as his voice has not yet changed. Both were excited to play their roles.

In a brief conversation with one of the directors after the show, he shared that he made sure it was okay with Coren if he played a character who was playing the part of - and dressing up like - a girl. I laughed because, of all the children, perhaps a child from my family would be the least likely to mind playing a character playing a different gender. We tend to see gender and gender expression a bit differently in our family.

We have had children in Camp Calumet's Drama Camp every Summer for the past eight years. I can't say the plays always go off without a hitch, but I can say that no matter what happens, the actors, the parents of the actors, and the audience leave having watched a wonderful performance, full of laughter, joy, and songs that may just get stuck in your head for a while. Nevertheless, do not fear it's just a play.