WACO, Texas (KXXV) — The Waco Children's Theatre is a nonprofit organization that hosts a yearly low-cost, four-week summer camp. The kids get to take different classes and put on a production at the end of the program.
- Many campers and staff have been with the group for a decade or longer.
- The program's summer shows will be this Thursday, Friday, and Saturday — 101 Dalmatians for the younger kids and Mean Girls High School Version for the teenagers.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
"It is consistently the most fun I have in my life, and it seems every summer just manages to go out of its way to one-up the last one," said 18-year-old camper, Hayden Scott.
Scott is finishing up his 11th summer with the Waco Children's Theater — he's been coming to camp every summer since he was seven-years-old, even after his parents moved out of Waco to New Mexico.
"I think it's a really great space for teens who want to do theater because there is really not that many open spots where you are guaranteed a role and you will always learn," said 17-year-old camper, Addison London.
London has been attending camp for nearly a decade.
"I really enjoy the process and doing it with other people my age who have the same goals as me," she said.
"I know we're all working towards something that we want to be amazing, like our efforts coming together has been the best part."
The Waco Children's Theatre is a nonprofit organization that hosts a yearly low-cost, four-week summer camp. The kids get to take different classes and put on a production at the end of the program.
While campers like Scott and London have been coming back for many years, it's Music Director Jacob Garcia's first summer with the group.
"I think something that makes this program unique is it isn't just about the show," Garcia said.
"A lot of people will come here and see our productions, but what happened everyday is they were going to music classes where we didn't just learn the music from the book — let's learn about reading music, understanding music and interpreting music."
Garcia says his family did not have a lot of money, but his parents still found programs accessible for him — so he says he appreciates that the camp is low-cost to reach more families.
"As a teacher, and I'm sure many other teachers would agree, we love working with young people and seeing those 'a-ha' moments, empowering them — seeing them really come into their own."
