County youth to perform plays

The Sweetwater Board of Cooperative Educational Services Summer Theatre for Youth will present two productions over the next two weeks.

Their production of “The Wizard of Oz: Young Performer’s Edition” will be presented at the Western Theatre on the campus of Western Wyoming Community College, Thursday at 7 p.m. Admission is free, and doors open at 6:30 p.m.

The cast features 45 young adults from ages eight to 18 under the direction of Western musical theatre professor Eric-Richard de Lora and nine Western students.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the beloved film musical “The Wizard of Oz,” and the Young Performers’ Edition is a one-hour adaptation featuring all the songs made memorable by the performances of Judy Garland, Ray Bolger and their on-screen friends.

The classic tale written in 1900 by L. Frank Baum, in which a Kansas farm girl travels over the rainbow to find new friends, face her fears, and discover the magical power of home, has been entertaining audiences for generations.

Their second production, presented by the Shakespeare Workshop under the direction of Western musical theatre professor Stephen Cramer, is Shakespeare’s romantic comedy “Twelfth Night,” adapted by Vonda Shuster and The Wichita Shakespeare Co., and features 15 high school and college students, to be presented on the Western Commons, the new outdoor amphitheater, on the campus of Western July 31 and Aug. 1 at 6:30 p.m. Admission is free, and doors open at 6 p.m. Blankets, picnic baskets and non-alcoholic beverages are encouraged as seating will be on the lawn.

“We want to make certain we create opportunities for our Western students to explore theatre education experiences with the young performers,” De Lora said. “And having both a musical and non-musical theatre experience, especially Shakespeare, for the performers allows them to develop more completely as actors, singers and dancers.”