Celebrating 25 Years: Dave Talken

As we approach our 25th Anniversary production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat this summer, we’re celebrating by looking back through our history.

Dave has built countless sets over the years, and once even made it rain on stage! As the father of three students, he has been a part of the organization since 2009.

Dave: “I think I think it has been a good place for our family in general. The theater aspect, the building of confidence, the faith aspect of it, I appreciate greatly, and in that it was a place that was safe for you all to be kids. To have the opportunity to express yourself and to to get to do something that you really enjoyed that also helped to cultivate faith in you and to have other people around as mentors in that regard as well. It was the Christian, it was the youth and then, yeah we do theater here. So that focus on on the kids and their families and on their faith in a theater environment.”

Hillary: “So you made it rain on stage during Singing in the Rain, can you explain to us briefly how that worked?”

Dave: “Well, we had a gutter that we put across, well we had a rolling platform that was 16 feet long that we put a gutter across the front of. It had a short roof on the wall in the back that came down with a pipe at the top with a whole bunch of holes in it. Had a tank in the back that had water in it and a pump that made a lot of noise and pumped the water up into that tube with the holes in it and it just ran down off of the roof and ideally splashed into the gutter, but a lot of it didn’t.”

Hillary: “And there was a fun fact about the pump. Can you share that with us?”

Dave: “Everyone tells me it was in the same key as the song. I have no way to confirm or deny that, cause yeah, I’m tone deaf.”

What's Happening at First Act?

Fugitive Songs Director’s Letter

Who hasn’t wanted to run away? Even if you were just walking down the street from your parents’ house or just taking a long drive, we’ve all felt the urge. Sometimes the only solution is to go and figure out where you’re going later. Sometimes you just have to take the leap.

What is a Callback?

After auditions are complete, the artistic teams gather together to prepare for callbacks. Callbacks typically occur the day after auditions and allow artistic teams to see more from certain students. They are calling these students back to see more, thus the name, callbacks! Keep reading to learn more about the callback process.

Alice by Heart Director’s Letter

There are many things to be gleaned from the story of Alice By Heart, but the one that has resonated with me the most is the beautiful representation of the journey of grief. Amidst the troubling times of World War II, Alice seeks normalcy in the pages of a story. On the outside: a fine way to handle hardship and adversity. Perhaps when we look a little deeper: an avoidance tactic. Another fine way to handle hardship…for a little while.