Twenty rising stars are waiting for the curtain to go up. They are the young cast of the annual summer Shakespeare camp held by Shooting Stars Theatre.
Director Melissa Glover had so many participants she had the luxury of double-casting two of the main characters in this year's play. Lindi Ammundsen and Emily Hicks share the pivotal role of Shylock while Sofie McCarthy and Owen Jacobson are splitting another prominent role, Bassanio.
Anyone familiar with Shakespeare will know from those characters that the play is Merchant of Venice, a comedy on the surface but high in drama and even controversy. What Glover is doing outside the literal script is fast-forwarding the setting to 1930s Germany, to illustrate how the Nazi rise to power parallels the 16th century Europe that Shakespeare was depicting and by inference how the same political stews might be boiling now.
The themes are saturated with politics, commerce, human foibles and prejudice. The language is loaded in, well, Shakespeare. One could expect a cast aged no more than 18 and as young as nine might feel intimidated. On the contrary, Glover's crew of kids is eager to show the public what they've been learning.
"Shylock is the antagonist, but he's not a villain," said Ammundsen, 17, dissecting her character. "He was treated horribly and got bitter because of it. (To get into character) I think about times things have happened to me, I think about what I've seen happen to other people I know, I try to imagine from that. I haven't had such horrible things happen to me, but you have to put yourself in those shoes."
"We can all relate to how that bad treatment would feel," said Hicks, 16. "He snapped because he was so worn down by people and he didn't have the power to stop it. He's just trying to avoid conflict and protect his daughter from falling into the dominant religion, a religion much different than his own. And then his money deals fall apart, so he loses that too. It's heartbreaking to be the person who loses everything important in your life and be torn down by the people around you."
"Humans have crutches. His wife, his daughter, his money, his religion - he lost all his crutches," said Jacobson, 12.
All four of these young actors have experience in school theatrics but those are limited opportunities, they said. They also take part in the annual Speech Arts and Drama Festival. This is their best chance at substantial roles, learning classical theatre lessons, and to be around kids who love it just as much as they do. The age disparity is melted by the shared love of the performing arts.
"I was reluctant, the first time my mom signed me up for this (last year), but right away I was glad to be here and I wanted to come back this year. I was counting the days," said McCarthy, 12. "It was great to release my voice, and be around other people who like theatre. We all get each other."
"I've never felt so happy to wake up on a Monday," said Jacobson, who joined because he saw his older sister enjoying the Shakespeare experience so much in past years of Shooting Stars. "She got to do some good roles and she helped lead other people forward. I'm looking forward to being like her."
McCarthy thinks she has leadership skills one day, too. Ammundsen believes her, based on her own experiences. McCarthy is already assertive whereas her own first day was more nervous three years ago and now she's one of the ones from whom the younger participants take their cues.
"I had never actually tried performing before," Ammundsen said. "I was star-struck being around all these people who were really good and had done it before. I was alongside people I thought were amazing. Being with people who work so hard and all want to do their best is an unforgettable experience."
Hicks, too, is one of the go-to actors in the group. She said "performing, for me, has always been a big thing, so to be able to show the public something I've been working towards is amazing. Even if the audience is only family and friends, it's a great feeling. It's also emotional to say goodbye to everyone at the end."
Ammundsen added, "People have said 'oh, you're done your last performance, isn't it great to get all that time back and have fun the rest of the summer?' But I was having fun. I wish another play started right away."
They are now in the final stages of their rehearsals. The Merchant Of Berlin is performed at Theatre NorthWest on Thursday at 7 p.m. and Friday at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Admission is by donation.
