Date: Fri 24-Jul-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: SHANNO

Quick Words:

Drama-Queens-Progressive

Full Text:

Drama Queens Show Their Potential

(with photo)

BY SHANNON HICKS

The Drama Queens took their act on the road last week, presenting four

performances an original production called Capital "P" . The Queens' 1998

Summer Tour, as they were calling it, concluded July 17 with a pair of area

performances.

Capital "P" was performed at Bassett's Coffee House in Brookfield on Friday

morning. Later that afternoon, the final show of the tour was presented at

C.H. Booth Library in Newtown. Previous performances were earlier in the week,

first at the home of one of the actors and then at Ashlar of Newtown.

Drama Queens was a two-week summer camp presented by The Newtown Progressive

School. The school is an independent middle school for grades 6-8 that tries

to prepare students for future educational experiences by consistently

encouraging self initiative, nurturing creative learning, and fostering a

strong sense of responsibility and confidence through community service.

This last initiative, the community service, came in two forms last week. The

first was via a performance at Ashlar of Newtown, where the ten young

actresses did their show for the residents of the assisted living facility.

"They really enjoyed it," Kelly McQuail, a Drama Queen, said Friday morning.

"There sang along with us for a lot of it."

Secondly, the Queens' third performance was a benefit for a local charity the

girls had decided upon as a group. Donations were collected at the door at

Bassett's from audience members. Immediately following the performance, the

acting company presented a donation to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Make-A-Wish

is a national non-profit, privately funded organization which grants wishes to

children under 18 with terminal or life-threatening illnesses.

Mary Gunzy, a representative from Make-A-Wish, was a guest at the Brookfield

show. She accepted the $78 raised by the troupe, and thanked them for making a

difference in the life of an area child.

"You work is going to directly benefit someone your own age," Ms Gunzy said.

"You should all feel very proud of yourselves. Thank you for your efforts."

Capital "P" was an original production created entirely by the girls

participating in Drama Queens and the school's faculty. "It's like A Chorus

Line , but with kids," Kelly McQuail explained before the Brookfield

performance.

Valerie Principi, a member of The Progressive School's faculty, said the girls

had decided on every song themselves, and wrote the script as a group. The

final script was finished during the first week of camp; the second week was

devoted to rehearsals and performances.

The final product was an enjoyable 45-minute performance that included

singing, dancing, dialogue and some really silly jokes.

The story line of Capital "P" followed a group of girls during a day of

auditions. Some of the girls were nervous, some were excited, all had

different ideas about the acting process. The music included original song and

dance numbers, as well as some numbers using familiar songs such as "A Few of

My Favorite Things" and "Somewhere Over The Rainbow."

So what does Capital "P" mean? According to the lyrics of the song that opened

and closed the play, each girl on that stage last week possesses a large

amount of Promise, and Possibility, and Potential.