HOW TO GO
What: Encore Youth Theatre presents “Annie Get Your Gun”
When: July 23, 24, 25. Shows are at 8 p.m. on July 23, 24 and 25 and at 2 p.m. on July 25.
Where: Miami University Hamilton, 1601 University Blvd., Parrish Auditorium
Cost: Tickets are $15, with a $3 discount for seniors 60 and older and children under age 12. Call (513) 675-KIDS to purchase tickets.
For more info: www.encoreyouththeatre.net
HAMILTON – Encore Youth Theatre will present “Annie Get Your Gun” at Miami University Hamilton’s Parrish Auditorium July 23, 24, 25.
Show times are at 8 p.m. each night with an additional 2 p.m. show Saturday, July 25. Tickets are $15. A $3 discount is available for seniors ages 60 and older and for children under age 12.
Diane Noonan, Encore chairman and “Annie Get Your Gun” show producer, said the show features Butler County youth in grades 7 to 12 and high school graduates.
“Audiences will be amazed at the production level and the professionalism of the show,” Noonan said.
By participating in Encore Youth Theater in the summer and Encore Junior in the fall, she said, children learn how to behave, how to act on stage, how to perform and how to be professional.
“The children come together with a love for theater and they have a bond with each other and a unity,” Noonan said. “I have seen a lot children, who start in Encore Junior in third grade and they continue in the program all the way through high school.
“Sydney Higgins, 17 from Hamilton High School, who is the girl that is playing Annie this year started in Encore Junior, and she’s now a junior with a lead part. She is an amazing actress and singer.”
The cast has been practicing Monday through Thursday from 6:30 to 10 p.m. at Parrish Auditorium. About 55 actors from Butler County are involved in the show.
“We wanted to do a show this year that was an old-time musical to give them a taste of what it’s like to do an old-school musical. We chose ‘Annie,’ because Annie is from Cincinnati,” Noonan said.
She said, we have had many of our alumni actors go on to be involved in Opera, Broadway shows and regional theater.
“I enjoy watching the children, and how fast they grow and catch on. Another thing that happens with Encore is that it is helping the high schools, and enhancing theater at the high school level,” Noonan said. “They never stop. They are always practicing and they want to make sure the show is the best it can be.”
Higgins said she has been involved with Encore for six years. At Hamilton High School, in addition to Encore, Higgins is involved in the Rhapsody in Blue show choir, and she was just elected as one of the co-presidents of the drama club student board. She also takes voice lessons and participates in community theater with Rotary and Greater Hamilton Civic Theatre. In college, she plans to major in musical theater and hopes to perform for a living.
“I’ve been doing Encore for a long time. It’s definitely fun to grow up through the process. You have to start and pay your dues,” Higgins said. “When you are in seventh grade, you are generally in the chorus, but you get to watch older kids and be influenced by seniors in high school.
“Then, you grow up, and you become those older kids, and it’s really a fun transition. I’ve grown up with these people my whole life, and it’s definitely something that I’ve known and love to do. That’s why I come back every year.”
Through the Encore program and by participating in community theater, Higgins said she has learned how to build relationships with her peers as well as adults.
“Shows come and go, but the people you meet, and the memories you have, those are the more important things. That’s what I’ve learned over the years. No matter how big of a part you have, it’s never as amazing as the friends you’ve made, and the people you’ve met,” Higgins said. “I’ve met most of my best friends in Encore.
“Last year, I did ‘Grease,’ and this year, I auditioned because it’s what I love to do, and I get to see my friends. I wanted to be Annie, because I’m old enough, it’s an exciting and fun role, and it was awesome that I got it.”
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