The Garfield Center has announced the 2024 Playmakers Director and production title and the date of open registration for this summer’s camp. For scheduling reasons, the camp starts a little earlier this year, with the first date of camp beginning June 24th 2024 and the camp-ending performance weekend on July 19, 20 and 21. A well-loved and successful theatrecraft and acting camp for young aspiring performers ages 8 through 15, the Garfield Center’s registration begins Friday, March 1st, and can be done by visiting https://www.garfieldcenter.org/camps/.
Playmakers’ 2024 production is “The Enchanted Bookshop,” by Todd Wallinger. The comedy takes place in a magical bookstore where great literary characters like Sherlock Holmes, Robin Hood, Dorothy Gale, Doctor Doolittle, Tom Sawyer, Heidi, and Pollyanna, among others, spring from their respective books to come alive at night. They long to help the bookshop’s scatterbrained owner, Margie, and her struggling business, but they must follow certain rules forbidding them from leaving the shop or being seen by human eyes or they’ll disappear forever. A dilemma arises when they must foil a nighttime robbery attempt in the bookshop without being seen. It is a delightful ensemble comedy that teaches a love for reading, and all Playmakers participants will have a character role opportunity.
Returning as this summer’s Playmakers Director is Kent County Middle School teacher Kaitlyn Wright. Kaitlyn is currently a 7th grade English/Language Arts teacher at Kent County Middle School. Kaitlyn brings over a decade of experience in education. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in English at Arcadia University in Glenside, PA, and her Masters in Educational Leadership and Administration at Salisbury University. Over the years in the classroom, she has infused her ELA curriculum with the study of drama, inviting her middle and high school students to perform and explore works spanning various genres including titles such as the science-fiction teleplay “The Monsters are Due on Maple Street,” Shakespeare’s tragedy “Romeo and Juliet,” and H.G. Well’s radio classic “The War of the Worlds.” She directed her first middle School production “The Big Bad Musical” at Salisbury Middle School in 2017 and was very proud to direct Kent County Middle School’s productions of “A Christmas Carol,” “The Wizard of Oz” and this year’s production of “Alice in Wonderland” in April. In addition to traditional theater, Kaitlyn spent many years serving as an appraiser for the regional and state Destination Imagination tournaments in Maryland, where she evaluated and coached countless elementary, middle, and high school teams competing in the improvisational acting and theater arts challenges. She is looking forward to returning to Playmakers this summer!
The fee for participants age 8 to 11 is $400.00 per enrollee, and the fee for participants age 12 to 15 is $450.00 per enrollee. Monday through Friday camp days start at 9:00 AM, with child drop-off beginning at 8:30 AM, and each camp day ends at 2:30 PM with child pick-up lasting until 3:00 PM. There will likely be a short day on Friday, July 19th in preparation for that evening’s opening night performance starting at 7 PM. The performance weekend will also feature a Saturday night performance at 7 PM and a Sunday matinee performance at 2 PM.
Playmakers registration slots tend to get filled quickly, so prospective participants and their parents should register early to ensure a spot in the camp.
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