Socorro Area Students Rehearse For Adaptation Of RobinsonCrusoe Story

By Mountain Mail staff

Mountain Mail/STPNS

June 26, 2008

• Original Mountain Mail/STPNS article: Socorro Area Students Rehearse For Adaptation Of RobinsonCrusoe Story 

SOCORRO, New Mexico (STPNS) -- The community is invited to join the hula-dancing chameleons and many other original characters at Friday's Seaside Resort on Saturday when the Missoula Children's Theatre and more than 50 local students present the Amazing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe.

The Amazing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe will be presented at 3:00pm and 5:30pm at the Finley Gym. Tickets are $5 for adults and $2 for youth and are available at the door.

The local cast features John Carilli as Robinson Crusoe, Jeriana Contreras as Wilson, his sole companion, and Tita Marrero-Van Fleet as Leonard the Leopard.  

Also featured are Friday's family, who will be played by Damiana Contreras, Maggie Kerkmans, Rose Kerkmans, Cassie Parker, Seamus Parker and Angelina Stanzione.  

Eli Weinkauf will play the band leader, Oscar the Octopus, and will feature Maira Carilli, Richard Carver, Stephanie Frisch, Jessica Hooper, Seferina Ortiz, Stephanie Soto and Zoe Whittle as the Oscar Octopus Octet band members.  

The local family of goats includes Athena Wrenn as Billy, Paula Barteau as Bill, Anastasia Placek as Willy, Kira Hale as Will and Brianna Lara as Wilma.  

Ambriel Mauldin, Acacia Murphy, Brier Murphy, Hazeliana Peete, Paige Pyke and Cameron Waters will appear as the very hairy, very scary Frowny-Face Tribe.  

The Colorful Chameleons will be played by Rose Carilli, Jasmin Chavez, Miriam Frisch, Dionne Molina, Chris Munoz, Jai Qureshi, Gaby Rodriguez, Alejandra Rodriguez, Shaianne Rosales, Diamond Silva and Roan Weinkauf.  

Friday will be played by MCT Tour actor/director LeAnn Bjornrud. Matt Lassey and Savannah Rivera are serving as assistant directors throughout the week.

The Missoula Children's Theatre residency in Socorro is presented locally by the New Mexico Tech Performing Arts Series with support from the City of Socorro, Dr. Eileen Comstock and Warren Marts.

The MCT, the nation's largest touring children's theatre, has been touring extensively for 35 years from Montana to Japan, and will visit more than 1,200 communities this year with 45 teams of tour actor/directors.

A tour team arrives in a given town with a set, lights, costumes, props and make-up, everything it takes to put on a play, except the cast.

The team holds an open audition and casts 50 to 60 local students to perform in the production.

The show is rehearsed throughout the week and two public performances are presented on Saturday. All MCT shows are original adaptations of classic children's stories and fairytales - a twist on the classic stories people know and love.  

Also included in the residency are three enrichment workshops presented by the Tour actor/directors. Creativity, social skills, goal achievement, communication skills and self-esteem are all characteristics that are attained through participation in the unique, educational project.  

MCT's mission is the development of life skills in children through participation in the performing arts. For more information, call Ronna Kalish or Titia Barham at 835-5688 or send an e-mail to pas@admin.nmt.edu.



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