After completing a summer repertoire of three shows, the Children’s Musical Theater San Jose is finally settling in its new excavations. The company moved into its creative arts center on Parkmoor Avenue in April, but quickly had to change focus to set up a stage in its parking lot for its shows in July.
“We got city approval on May 4 and held auditions on May 5,” CMT CEO Dana Zell said of the preparation for the outdoor shows.
The company has built a round theater that can accommodate 200 people for its productions of “Snoopy!” The Musical ”(with artists aged 7 to 10),“ Starlight Express ”(10 to 14) and“ American Idiot ”(14 to 20).
“We had 200 kids in shows and 400 in camps this summer, all safe and masked,” Zell said.
That these young performers and their parents, called to volunteer behind the scenes with CMT, felt comfortable participating reflects the culture of the company, she adds. “Some were definitely not ready, but for the kids who were able to participate, I think they left feeling safe and secure. It was necessary that these children be together in this community.
CMT staff and volunteers have spent the month since the shows closed consolidating the centre’s costume and stage stores and preparing the five studio spaces for rehearsals and classes, as well as auditions for “Disney’s Frozen. Jr “. August 26-27. Barring COVID-19 restrictions on indoor performances, this show’s 7-11-year-old performers are expected to take to the stage at the Montgomery Theater in downtown San Jose from November 3-7 to open the 54th season of this show. CMT.
Rehearsals for this and other shows will take place in one of the two Creative Arts Center studios that have the same dimensions as the Montgomery Theater stage, with the stage layout painted on the spring foam floor so that artists can get an idea of the space.
At 25,000 square feet, the center – on the site of a former Savers thrift store at 1545 Parkmoor Ave. in San Jose – is a bit smaller than the old CMT excavations, but Zell says the building’s layout makes up for it in terms of Efficiency.
“The old space had 14,000 square feet of rehearsal space and a separate 14,000 warehouse,” she adds.
With rehearsal and store space under one roof, Zell says, “Parents can drop off their kids and come right back here to help.
For more information on the 54th season of Children’s Musical Theater San Jose, visit www.cmtsj.org
