Putting together our 8th season for our students we found ourselves looking for shows that not only pushed our young artists to new heights, but take them on an artistic and mindful journey.-Darnell Patrick Morris, Artistic Director & Morgan Fannon, Managing Director
LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS STANDING_O (Grades 5-9)
Auditions January, 2023 | Performances May 2023
Meek flower shop assistant Seymour pines for co-worker Audrey. During a total eclipse, he discovers an unusual plant he names Audrey II, which feeds only on human flesh and blood. The growing plant attracts a great deal of business for the previously struggling store. After Seymour feeds Audrey’s boyfriend, Orin, to the plant after Orin’s accidental death, he must come up with more bodies for the increasingly bloodthirsty plant.
JEKYLL & HYDE
SENIOR COMPANY (Grades 9-12)
Auditions September 2022 | Performances December 2022
FROZEN JR
JUNIOR COMPANY (Grades 3-9)
Auditions September 2022 | Performances January 2023
A story of true love and acceptance between sisters, Frozen JR. expands upon the emotional relationship and journey between Princesses Anna and Elsa. When faced with danger, the two discover their hidden potential and the powerful bond of sisterhood. With a cast of beloved characters and loaded with magic, adventure, and plenty of humor, Frozen JR. is sure to thaw even the coldest heart!
SPRING AWAKENING
SENIOR COMPANY (Grades 9-12)
Auditions November 2022 | Performances March 2023
The winner of eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical, told by Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater through what Entertainment Weekly called, “the most gorgeous Broadway score this decade,” Spring Awakening explores the journey from adolescence to adulthood with a poignancy and passion that is illuminating and unforgettable. The landmark musical is an electrifying fusion of morality, sexuality and rock and roll that is exhilarating audiences across the nation like no other musical in years.
THE WIZARD OF OZ
JUNIOR COMPANY (Grades 3-9)
Auditions February 2022 | Performances April 2022
L. Frank Baum’s novel comes to life as Dorothy Gale of Kansas is swept away to the magical land of Oz. There, she encounters a host of whimsical characters: good witches, bad witches, animals that talk, scarecrows that walk, and things magical to behold. Along the way, she makes new friends, but must also brave many dangers, including the Wicked Witch of the West, who will stop at nothing to get her hands on Dorothy’s magical ruby slippers.
SISTER ACT JR
STANDING_O (Grades 5-9)
Auditions February, 2023 | Performances May 2023
Based on the hit 1992 film and Tony-nominated Broadway musical, Sister Act JR. is the feel-good musical comedy that will have audiences jumping to their feet! Featuring original music by Alan Menken (Newsies, Beauty and the Beast, Little Shop of Horrors), outrageous dancing, and a truly moving story, Sister Act JR. will leave audiences breathless. A sparkling tribute to the universal power of friendship, Sister Act JR. is a reason to REJOICE!
ANDREW LIPPA’S THE WILD PARTY
SENIOR COMPANY (Grades 9-12)
Auditions March 2023 | Performances June 2023
A steamy prohibition tale, steamrolling and roaring its way across the stage, Lovers Queenie and Burrs decide to throw the party-to-end-all-parties in their Manhattan apartment. Based on Joseph Moncure March’s 1928 narrative poem of the same name, this darkly brilliant show features one of the most exciting, pulse-racing scores ever written.
ALL SHOOK UP
SUMMER TEEN INTENSIVE (Grades 7-12)
Auditions March 2023 | Performances July 2023
It’s 1955, and into a square little town in a square little state rides a guitar-playing young man who changes everything and everyone he meets. Loosely based on Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, this hip-swiveling, lip-curling musical fantasy will have you jumpin’ out of your blue suede shoes with such classics as “Heartbreak Hotel,” “Hound Dog,” “Jailhouse Rock,” and “Don’t Be Cruel.”
CHICAGO SCHOOL EDITION
SUMMER TEEN INTENSIVE (Grades 7-12)
Auditions March 2023 | Performances July 2023
In roaring twenties Chicago, chorine Roxie Hart murders a faithless lover and convinces her hapless husband, Amos, to take the rap…until he finds out he’s been duped and turns on Roxie. Convicted and sent to death row, Roxie and another “Merry Murderess,” Velma Kelly, vie for the spotlight and the headlines, ultimately joining forces in search of the “American Dream”: fame, fortune, and acquittal. This sharp-edged satire features a dazzling score that sparked immortal staging by Bob Fosse.
THE ADDAMS FAMILY YOUNG@PART
JUNIOR SUMMER INTENSIVE (Grades 3-10)
August 2023
THE ADDAMS FAMILY, a comical feast that embraces the wackiness in every family, features an original story and it’s every father’s nightmare: Wednesday Addams, the ultimate princess of darkness, has grown up and fallen in love with a sweet, smart young man from a respectable family– a man her parents have never met. And if that wasn’t upsetting enough, Wednesday confides in her father and begs him not to tell her mother. Now, Gomez Addams must do something he’s never done before– keep a secret from his beloved wife, Morticia. Everything will change for the whole family on the fateful night they host a dinner for Wednesday’s “normal” boyfriend and his parents.
INTRODUCING OVATIONS JUNIOR & SENIOR COMPANIES
In putting together our 2017-2018 season, we reflected on our program and what would move us to the next level. We are thrilled to share with you our two new groups: OVATIONS SENIOR COMPANY (Grades 8-12) & OVATIONS JUNIOR COMPANY (Grades 3-9).
In creating these companies, we wanted to provide a clear overview of what we expect from our students and what our community can expect from OVATIONS programming. We believe these two programs embody our core objectives: ENGAGE, INSPIRE and EMPOWER.
At OVATIONS we always strive to create a professional yet enriching and supportive atmosphere. Our production teams are composed of DC and NYC professional theatre artists dedicated to bringing the next generation of artist to the next level. Through mentoring, exploration and encouraging self-discipline, we confidently feel that we prepare our students for performing and for life. To quote Mama Rose, “You’ll be swell, you’ll be great, gonna have the whole world on a plate..”
-Darnell Patrick Morris
Producing Artistic Director
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM OUR JUNIOR COMPANY
Before Moving Onto Our SENIOR COMPANY Students Are Able To:
- Create fully realized characters with the ability to answer such questions as: Who Am I? Where Am I Coming From? What do I want?
- Understanding character objectives and able to label whether in spoken dialogue or sung lyrics
- Act and emote songs
- Make songs and musical moments an extension of dialogue and scene
- Understand the basic process of script analysis
- Comfortable with the process of “marking up your script”
- Understands the principals of between the actually written text vs sub-text
- Comfortably acts using various and sometimes multiple emotions as characters dictate
What We Expect From Our Students:
- Students are expected to come to rehearsals familiar with scenes or musical numbers and are expected to be off book for the particular scene or number once they are staged
- Students come prepared to rehearsals with character descriptions
- To understand their character(s) objectives
- Students are expected to work outside of rehearsals on their staging, dialogue, and music whether on their own or with their voice and acting teachers
- Students come with a willingness to step outside their comfort zone
After Completing Our SENIOR COMPANY Students Are Able To:
- Create three-dimensional characters
- Understanding character objectives
- Act and emote songs: ability to “live in the moment” vs “showing the moment”
- Make songs and musical moments an extension of dialogue and scene
- Confident in the process of script analysis and able to “mark up their script” clearly labeling beats, objective, subtext
- Clearly understands the difference between text and sub-text
- Understands how to create and share complex emotions, objectives, and situations with their audiences
What We Expect From Our Students:
- Students are expected to be off book for every rehearsal
- Students come prepared to rehearsals with full character descriptions and clear understanding of their characters objectives
- Students are expected to work outside of rehearsals on their staging, dialogue, and music whether on their own or with their voice and acting teachers
- Students come with a willingness to step outside their comfort zone
PRESS FROM OUR PAST SEASON SHOWS