The Tyrone Community Players has announced it is a recipient of a $1,000 grant from Target Corporation.
This award is designated for TCP’s Children’s Theater Project, which is geared specifically at a children’s chorus which will perform choreographed Broadway music.
“We found out about the grant when we were doing a children’s production, FGMIT’S Accidental Magic, this summer,” said TCP member Cindy Bennett. “We had advertised for young performers, and an employee of the Target company had a child interested in our show. That employee turned us onto the grant process and even got an application for us.”
The monies will be used for a project that will be incorporated into the summer theater program, which will be established by TCP this year. The newly established group will be called Act 2 Jr.
“The Players are extremely grateful to the Target organization for recognizing the importance of children’s programming to the arts,” Nancy Sloss, a member of TCP’s board of directors and chairperson for The Children’s Theater Project, said. “TCP is committed to including our youngest members in the thrill of creative expression fostered by the arts.”
Target Corporation has a tradition of giving back to communities where they do business, and this year that giving will amount to $2 million a week. That commitment is reflected in Target Stores grant-making program, which supports projects that promote the arts, education and family violence prevention.
“At Target Corporation we feel it is not only our responsibility to give back to the community, we feel it is our privilege,” said Laysha Ward, vice president of community relations. “The Tyrone Community Players is doing incredible things to help strengthen the community of Tyrone.”
Target Stores, along with its parent company Target Corporation, first opened their doors in 1962, and has partnered with nonprofit organizations, guests and team members to help meet community needs.
“Act 2 Jr. will give young people an opportunity to perform outside the traditional setting of a main-stage production. Its purpose is not only to encourage performance skills, but to teach the value of team work, with acceptance and support of each child’s level of artistic expression,” added Sloss.
Bennett also added, “The grant money from Target will help TCP keep the costs to individuals at a minimum, as we like to do for all children’s theater projects, so all kids can participate if they are willing to make the commitment.”
Act 2 Jr. will be a small performing troupe for children ages eight to thirteen. It will begin this summer, and the troupe will be available to sing in different venues and have traveling opportunities as the adult supervisors deem appropriate.
“We chose this age group because they do not have as many performance opportunities as they will when they get into high school,” explained Bennett. “The group will sing Broadway music, which will be choreographed, and will even have some theater dialogue worked in. It will be under the direction of Karen Mayhew, a music teacher at St. Matthew’s School.”
More specific information on Act 2 Jr., as well as information on TCP’s new summer theater program for young people, will be available later in TCP’s twentieth anniversary season, as published in a weekly series every Friday in The Daily Herald.
