27 of Sitka’s youngest actors take to the stage this weekend to perform a play set in an enchanted forest. Young Performers Theater Director Zeke Blackwell and performers Arya Galanin and Rosie Starbuck joined KCAW’s Erin Fulton for the Morning Interview on Tuesday to discuss the project. A Tale from the North Woods isn’t a widely known play, but the themes, woven into a fairytale setting, are timeless.
“There are trolls and gnomes who have been feuding for generations. And then there’s these two young girls…one is a troll and one is a gnome, and they kind of accidentally meet each other and really enjoy spending time with each other and want to be friends,” says Blackwell. “So they have to figure out how to stop their families from fighting.”
Arya Galanin is playing a 10-year-old gnome named Lele. And Rosie Starbuck is playing the role of Shebock, a ten-year-old troll.
“She is very passionate about drawing like she loves art,” says Galanin of her character. “She has a sketchbook that is filled with like, tons of her drawings. And in the very first scene…she disobeys her parents rules going into the troll country just to find her sketchbook. That’s how passionate she is.”
As for Shebock, “She really loves to write, and she really does not like her brother,” says Starbuck.
YPT is a performing arts training program at the Sitka Fine Arts Camp. It’s divided into two groups – 2nd through 5th grade and 6th through 12th grades. Both groups produce a play in the fall and a musical in the spring. Both Starbuck and Galanin say they’re learning skills that go beyond the stage, like teamwork building skills, problem solving, and empathy.
A Tale From the North Woods opens November 18 at Odess Theater. You can find ticket information on our website at KCAW dot org.
