2023 Programs Announced For Ocean City Theatre Company
Veronica Flesher, Patch Staff
The Greater Ocean City Theatre Company (OCTC) has announced its 2023 spring and summer lineup of classes, camps, and performances for kids in kindergarten through adults.
STORYTIME THEATRE
Students in kindergarten through 2nd grade will bring all their favorite storybook characters to life! Classes meet Saturday mornings from 9 a.m. – 10 a.m. at the OCTC Studios on West Ave. Classes begin on March 11 and end on April 29.
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL ACTING CLASS
Open to students in 3rd through 5th grades. This class will teach the basics of acting for the stage, and you will learn to hone and craft your acting skills. Classes begin Saturday, March 11 and end on Saturday, April 29. All classes are from 10:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. at the OCTC Studios.
BROADWAY DANCE AND SCULPT
Open to everyone 16 years and older, this 50-minute, open-level class provides a full body warmup and back-to-back cardio bursts of Broadway-inspired dances. The movement patterns are simple and low-impact and can be scaled to any person’s movement needs. Classes are Sunday mornings at 9:30 a.m. starting on March 19 and ending on April 2.
MUSICAL THEATRE AUDITION PREP
Up your audition game with this 3-week course. This class is for 8th-grade through college levels and is intended for students with an intermediate to advanced understanding of musical theater. Classes meet 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. at OCTC studios on March 19, March 26, and April 2.
OCTC ‘STARS’ PROGRAM
This three-week course is intended for teens (13 +) through adult age groups who have physical, cognitive, or developmental disabilities. In our three-week pilot program, we will create opportunities for social interaction, skill building through improv/character-building exercises, vocal warmups/tongue twisters, and artistic collaboration. Classes are held at OCTC studios, from 2 p.m. – 3 p.m. on March 19, March 26, and April 2.
IMPROV ACTING TROUPE
This improv class teaches classic improv techniques in the style of ‘Whose Line Is It Anyway?’. This class is open to students in 7th through 12th grades, and classes are held on Mondays from 5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. at the OCTC Studios. Classes start on April 3 and end on May 15.
ADULT ACTING CLASS
This class is open to anyone 16 years old and older! Learn monologues, and perform both comedic and dramatic scenes. Classes begin Monday, April 3, and end on May 15. Classes meet at OCTC Studios on Mondays from 7 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
MUSICAL THEATRE SONG & DANCE
We are offering two sessions of this class, one for students in 2nd – 4th grade and one for students in 5th – 8th grade. Students will experience the thrill of singing, dancing, and performing! Half the class focuses on Vocal Musical skills, while the second half focuses on the Broadway-Style movement. Classes are Tuesday nights starting on April 4 and ending on May 16.
MUSICAL THEATRE DANCE FOR ADULTS
This class is open to teens and adults! In each class, you will learn the choreography of a Broadway song! Classes are from 7 p.m. – 8 p.m. on Wednesday evenings starting on April 5 and concluding on May 17.
The 2023 Summer Theatre Camp Schedule offers the following:
SUMMER KICKOFF MINI-CAMP – IT’S A SMALL WORLD
In this mini-camp, campers in kindergarten through 3rd grades as of Fall 2023 will explore theatre techniques and will bring the cultures of Hawaii (Moana), Columbia (Encanto), and Arabian Desert (Aladdin) to life through singing, dancing, acting, crafts, and more!
THEATRE CAMP 1: JUKEBOX TIME MACHINE!
Keeping with the tradition of offering a fantastic theatre experience for youth, Ocean City Theatre Company’s annual collaboration with the City Recreation Department returns. You’ve never seen anything like our amazing jukebox time machine! Just insert a quarter to travel to a past decade when Roxie, the time machine tour guide, will share a few nostalgic and fun facts before dropping the needle on some of the greatest pop hits of all time. Participants will sing and dance along to iconic songs from the 1930s to the 2000s! Musical numbers include Jukebox Time Machine; Music! Music! Music!; She Loves You; Dancing Queen; Splish, Splash; Vogue; Don’t Stop Believin’; Breakaway and It Don’t Mean a Thing If It Ain’t Got That Sing, Sing, Sing. Campers will also attend the Tuesday, July 11 performance of “The Cat In The Hat” at the Ocean City Music Pier.
Camp is open to 3rd through 8th-grade students as of fall 2023. This two-week camp runs July 3 – 7 (no camp on July 4), and July 10 – 14, with a performance in the evening of July 14 at the Hughes Performing Arts Center. Signups start May 1 at www.ocnj.us (Click on Recreation Programs). For more information, call 609-525-9304.
THEATRE CAMP 2: A MIXED-UP FAIRYTALE!
This camp is for all the young actors and actresses who like to perform but don’t want to do musical theatre! The entire world of fairy tales gets utterly mixed up in this silly one-act play! The Grimm brothers are writing their stories late into the night when suddenly a terrible gust of wind flings open the door and blows the pages everywhere! Later that night, the stories begin to intermingle in Wilhelm’s dreams.
Cinderella desperately tries to get to the royal ball, but somehow she ends up at Rapunzel’s tower. As her Fairy Godmother mistakenly sends her on to the Seven Dwarves’ cottage and Snow White’s castle, Cinderella meets loads of new friends — dwarves, bears, pigs, and witches! — all of whom are just as lost and out of place as she is! When they all finally make their way to the ball, Cinderella finally meets her prince, and they all share a giant fairy tale party “happily” thereafter!
Camp is open to 3rd through 8th-grade students as of fall 2023. This two-week camp runs 9 am – 12 pm July 17 – 21, and July 24 – 28, with a performance on the last day at the Hughes Performing Arts Center.
THEATRE CAMP 3: BROADWAY BEAT!
Do you hear that beat? It’s the sound of people entering the theater on the most famous street in the world. It’s the sound of Broadway! Celebrate musical theater with hits from “Hairspray,” “The Music Man,” “The King and I,” “Wicked,” “Rent,” “Grease,” and a medley of George M. Cohan favorites. This unique musical collection features seven kid-friendly arrangements and narrations packed with fun facts about Broadway.
Camp is open to students in 2nd through 8th grade as of Fall 2023. This two-week camp runs 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. July 31 – Aug. 4, Aug. 7 – 11, with a performance at the end of camp on Aug. 5 at the Hughes Performing Arts Center.
Final Mini-Camp: THEATRE EXPLORER CAMP
In this mini-camp, actors/actresses will be introduced to dramatic play and basic theatre techniques. Campers will go on exploration by using imaginative trips through the jungle, Wild Wild West, under the sea in the ocean, and on an African safari.
Camp is open to kindergarten through 3rd-grade students as of Fall 2023. This one-week camp runs Aug. 14 – 18, with a performance at the end of camp on Aug. 18 at the Hughes Performing Arts Center.
ACTING FOR THE CAMERA
Participants will learn technical skills related to acting for the camera and explore various elements of on-screen performances for TV, film, voiceovers, and commercials. The final project will be to create a self-tape for future audition submissions.
Camp is open to 5th through 12th-grade students as of Fall 2023. This one-week camp runs Aug. 14 – 18.
THE WIZARD OF OZ MUNCHKIN CAMP
Kids in the 2nd – 5th Grades will have the opportunity to work alongside professional actors and the Ocean City POPS Orchestra in a fully-staged production of THE WIZARD OF OZ. All participants must have previous theatre, dance, or singing experience, and a level of professionalism will be expected. The participation fee includes costuming but does not include show tickets for families and friends. Rehearsals begin on July 13 with performances on Aug. 1-11.
The 2023 Summer Junior Company is proud to offer MEAN GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL EDITION for our High School Junior Company and LEGALLY BLONDE JR for our Middle School Junior Company. The OCTC Junior Company is an audition-based program that closely follows the structure of our professional company. Auditions will be held on May 6th or 7th by appointment only. Learn more about the OCTC Jr Company or register for an appointment at oceancitytheatrecompany.com. Be sure to click on the Jr. Company page.
MEAN GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL EDITION
Cady Heron may have grown up on an African savanna, but nothing prepared her for the wild and vicious ways of her strange new home: suburban Illinois. How will this naïve newbie rise to the top of the popularity pecking order? By taking on The Plastics, a trio of lionized frenemies led by the charming but ruthless Regina George. But when Cady and her friends devise a “Revenge Party” to end Regina’s reign, she learns the hard way that you can’t cross a Queen Bee without getting stung.
MEAN GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL EDITION is open to students in 9th grade through 12th grade as of September 2023. Performances will be held at the Ocean City Music Pier on July 21st & 22nd at 7:30 p.m.
LEGALLY BLONDE JR.
Based on the award-winning Broadway musical and the smash hit motion picture, Legally Blonde The Musical JR. is a fabulously fun journey of self-empowerment and expanding horizons. The show’s instantly recognizable songs are filled with humor, wit, and sass — leaving cast members and audiences alike seeing pink!
Legally Blonde JR. follows the transformation of Elle Woods as she tackles stereotypes, snobbery, and scandal in pursuit of her dreams. When Elle’s boyfriend, Warner, dumps her and heads to Harvard, claiming she’s not “serious” enough, Elle takes matters into her own hands, crafting a showy song-and-dance personal essay and charming her way into law school. Befriending classmate Emmett, and spunky hairdresser, Paulette, along the way, Elle finds that books and looks aren’t mutually exclusive. As Elle begins outsmarting her peers, she realizes that law may be her natural calling after all.
Legally Blonde Jr. is open to students in 5th through 8th grade as of Sept. 2023. Performances will be held at the Ocean City Music Pier on Aug. 25 and 26 at 7:30 pm.