Where it all Begins: Spring Awakens at Theatre Orangeville Academy

Now that the dust is settled from a thrilling fall session with Theatre Orangeville Academy, we are excited to be gearing up for the spring session, which is sure to be as inspiring, cultivating and magical as always. If you haven’t heard already, spring registration for your favourite Academy programs, plus our reignited workshop series classes, is open with spots filling up fast!

Prepping for the spring is a period of reflection on our previous sessions. The Academy programs never fail to fill my day with joy. Sure, walking into the rehearsal hall during a scheduled class is often met with a flurry of activity and a constant stream of chatter. But watching the young thespians of our community chasing adventure, fighting dragons, and, in a specific case from our last Next Stage cohort, learning how to use a landline (🤯), reminds me of the importance of curating a beginning, finding the spark that ignites a passion, holding close to the memory that turned a moment into a journey.

For me, and many like me, this is where it all started. A theatre class that our parents signed us up for in hopes that it would ease our shyness, build our confidence, and help us discover our voice. Whatever the outlining skill is, theatre classes pushed us to overcome and grow, all while creating a foundational love for the performing arts, and a reminder to embrace and celebrate our creative sides.

The Theatre Orangeville Academy strives to honour that tradition, creating opportunities for many and any to find their beginnings. Whether it’s our after-school classes, workshops, camps, Theatre Orangeville Youth Singers (T.O.Y.S.) choir or Young Company, there is sure to be a program that fits the needs of those seeking to build performing art skills, and the many transferable ones that continue on with us as we embark on our journey post-theatre kid life.  

February launches us into a (hopefully) early spring programming schedule with the T.O.Y.S. starting rehearsal on February 3rd and the first of our workshops, Booked and Busy: Audition Prep for Young People, on February 7th.

T.O.Y.S., the program that ignited my passion, returns for its spring session, rehearsing from February to mid-May as they build their own fully supported showchoir production entitled Go the Distance: A Concert of Journey and Adventure. Using themes of personal journey, growing up, travelling, time, and facing adversity, choir members will sing and dance their way through years of extraordinary music that we all love to sing. The music, paired with costumes, choreography, props, lighting and staging, will immerse students into the world of theatre as they work on building musical theatre skills.

Our workshop series aims to provide students with specialized skill-building classes led by professionals in the theatre industry. Workshop themes will vary throughout the season, from audition preparation to in-depth scene study, analyzing story through song, playwriting and a variety of technical production skills. The goal is to cultivate skills for the theatre kids shooting the theatre world beyond a recreational level.

Spots are still available for both T.O.Y.S. and the workshop, for our full spring schedule, click here and learn more about classes, the academy and who we are. We hope to see you out at one of our Academy programs, find your beginning, a moment, or maybe continue on your journey. From one theatre kid to another, keep creating, share your passion, find your shine, and tell your stories; you never know where it may lead you.

Perhaps you’ll find yourself 20 years later writing a blog post for a theatre company that was a part of your beginning.

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-Kait Gallant

Programs Coordinator