Spotlight Youth Theatre getting ready to perform The Drowsy Chaperone Jr.

Drowsy Chaperone Jr. will be performed at the Marigold Cultural Centre in Truro by Spotlight Youth Theatre from July 21-23.

The cast and crew involved in the Spotlight Youth Theatre program are excited to put on their annual musical – the comedic spoof of 1920s Broadway, The Drowsy Chaperone Jr. From July 21-23, these teens will take to the Marigold Cultural Centre stage after three weeks of lessons and rehearsals. For some of the youth, the feeling of being in the limelight is still fresh. For others, it will be their last time gracing the Marigold stage.

The musical is, in some ways, unlike anything Spotlight has put on before. The Canadian musical-within-a-comedy centres on a glum Broadway fan who puts on a record of the fictional 1928 musical, which comes to life on stage as he narrates. The story of the musical itself revolves around the marriage between an oil baron and a musical theatre actress.

“It was written as a gag for a wedding,” explained co-director Emma Smit-Geraghty, who has a unique relationship with the show. “When I was in college, I was becoming very disenfranchised with the concept of musical theatre as a whole. My class put on The Drowsy Chaperone, but I wasn’t in it.

I got to watch it, and I didn’t know anything about it at the time. “By the end of the show, I found myself sobbing,” she continued. “At a certain point, when you’re a performing artist, you’re expected to be creating art with all the asterisks, gold print and italics, but we all fell in love with musical theatre because it made us happy.”

Related Discussing death with Spotlight Theatre staging Beetlejuice Jr. Into the Woods Jr. shining a spotlight on talented performers in Truro, N.S. Truro's Marigold Youth Spotlight Theatre presents Matilda Jr. starting on Thursday That was the message Smit-Geraghty took from watching The Drowsy Chaperone, and it’s one she wanted to share with Spotlight’s youth: that people love art for art’s sake. It’s a reminder for those both new to the program and those getting ready to go out into the world.

Virgil Johnston, 18, has been in the Spotlight program for several years. They have performed in several of their past musicals. This time around, they play the part of a news reporter.

Having just graduated, this is their last production with Spotlight. “I have the feeling I’m going to cry,” Johnston admitted with an anxious laugh. “Especially during the last number of the show.

It starts out slow and heartfelt, and that’s going to get me. “But I’m glad I’m doing the show,” they said, “and I have a lot of people that I like hanging out with here.” Popular program With about 40 cast members, Spotlight is a popular program among Truro and Colchester’s young theatre enthusiasts – so much so that, like many of Spotlight’s productions, it’s a double cast with interchanging performers every show.

The musicals are one reason for its popularity, but another is just how many find connection in the program. Friendships are formed that will last longer than their time in Spotlight. Mitchell Kyle-MacLean will also be aging out of the Spotlight program this year.

She plays the titular chaperone and the chaperone’s real-world actress, Beatrice Stockwell. “Spotlight has really meant a lot to me,” said Kyle-MacLean. “It’s an amazing community.

It’s an amazing experience. Theatre has been my main hobby since I was six years old. Knowing this is my last show ever is a lot.”

Yet, with age comes wisdom. Both Johnston and Kyle-MacLean can’t help but think back to how they saw the older youth when they first joined Spotlight. They compare those thoughts to how they view and interact with the new actors of today.

“It’s great to see the younger kids now and knowing after we leave, it’s going to be great still,” said Kyle-MacLean. “Seeing all the people that weren’t there when I first started and seeing their development, it’s like, ‘Whoa ... was that what the older kids were seeing when I was going through it?’ It’s really fun.”

Two of those actors are Lily Robertson and Ruby Sommers, who play the chaotic aviator Trix and the soon-to-be-wed actress Janet, respectively, and are in their second year of the Spotlight program. Their thoughts on the program aren’t all too different from those of their older peers. “I really like it,” said Robertson.

“I like how it brings everybody together.” “I really enjoy it,” Sommers added. “I really like the directors.

They do all the choreographing and they get people to come and choreograph. They also give us fun things to do, like the other day we did a scavenger hunt and I got a treat in the end.” Talented crew Smit-Geraghty admits it can be a demanding program.

With less than a month of rehearsals, the actors have to show professionalism and dedication to pull off the production in time. However, it’s only this way because the directors know just how talented the youth are. “It’s not your average theatre program,” said the director.

“Everyone who comes here says there’s something in the water. It is such a special group of young people. We have raised the bar, and without fail, we have seen them rise to meet that bar.”

The Drowsy Chaperone Jr. will be performed at the Marigold Cultural Centre from July 21-23 at 7 p.m., with an afternoon matinee on Thursday, July 23, at 2 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the Marigold Cultural Centre website .