The Jewish Center
revives kosher
luncheon theater
for kids with
`Beauty And The
Beast.'

SUZANNE CHESSLER

SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

Kosher Act

kosher luncheon/the-
ater program with
young performers
playing to young au-
diences is being revived at
the Jewish Community Cen-
ter.
Tedd E. Bear Productions
is presenting Beauty and the
Beast on five consecutive
Sundays starting Feb. 7 in
West Bloomfield, with only
the March 14 show at the
Jimmy Morris Building in
Oak Park. The program was
planned by Nancy Gurwin,
who stages family-oriented
musicals at the JCC .
"I want this to be informal
and fun," said Ms. Gurwin,
who initiated a similar en-
tertainment package five
years ago. After a hot dog
lunch is served in one room,
the audience will move on to
the theater.
The script for the musical,
which was written exclusive-
ly for youth theater by a con-
temporary drama service in
Colorado, will be supple-
mented by a melodic intro-
duction choreographed for
two dancers.
"I'm very excited about
this," said Ms. Gurwin, who

A

entertains aboard the Michi-
gan Star Clipper Dinner
Train and teaches theater
classes. "It's a hot property;
everybody loves Beauty and
the Beast."
All five roles, which are
paid, have been double cast
to allow for flexibility. The
ages of the young actors and
actresses range from 11-17.
"Along with the kids who
have a lot of experience, there
are the ones who never tried
out before but who love the

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Lillana Richter, Dana Steingold, Stephanie Unger and Anna Ramsey rehearse.

theater," explained Ms. Gur-
win, who auditioned the as-
piring thespians. Selections
were based on combined act-
ing, dancing and singing tal-
ents.
Laura Buono, cast as one
of the two Beauties, appeared
in Les Miserables at the Fish-
er Theatre and in Chicago.

"I think that one of the
most exciting things to watch
is live theater," Ms. Gurwin
said. "I think it's very mes-
merizing for kids, and obvi-
ously if the production has a
beautiful story line, and the
music is beautiful and the
dancing is nice, it's special for
the kids to see other kids on
stage.
"I sit and watch these faces
glued to the stage, and I'm
sure they are learning. If they
have any kind of feeling of

ever wanting to be an actor
or an actress after watching
one of these things, that's
what the turn-on is.
"They want to get involved,
and they say: 'I can do that; I
can sing, and I can dance.'
That's what happens with my
classes when they see the
shows that I have done."
Daniel Kahn, 14, who por-
trays Papa, comes to the pro-
duction with professional
experience gained from tak-
ing parts in the Jewish En-

semble Theatre (JET). A stu-
dent at Roeper, he enrolls in
acting classes during the
summer.
Daniel said that playing an
adult in a play written for
children has allowed him to
increase his range. The JET
roles had him portraying
characters close to his own
age.
"I think that theater for
young people is great," he
said. "I loved theater when I
KOSHER ACT page 86