#ValleyMusicals 2019: Community support key for seniors pursuing theater after graduation

Editor’s note: For more details on what Valley schools are staging and when, see the chart at the end of this story. Share your favorite moments, photos and feedback to jzaktansky@dailyitem.com or via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram using the tag #ValleyMusicals 

While playing the lead character as Tevye as a sophomore in Shikellamy’s performance of “Fiddler on the Roof,” Camden Hare shared an impactful moment with Natalie Shoch, who played his daughter, Tzeitel.

“It was the wedding scene, where Tzeitel is having the wedding of her dreams and suddenly the opposers to the Jewish people trash it all,” he said. “It sticks with me. I glanced at Natalie in that moment and I truly felt her pain. Those emotions were real.

“That’s when I truly realized the power of theater — if I can feel these emotions living in this moment and then get others to experience those same emotions, that is something special.”

That realization has helped spark Hare — now a senior — to take his theater aspirations to the next level after graduating high school this spring. He isn’t alone — among others in the Valley with the same aspirations are Lewisburg senior Peter Marrara, Danville senior Madison Willoughby and fellow Shikellamy senior Derek Mathews — who is focused on a career specifically in the movie industry.

“When you are watching Star Wars and you see Luke Skywalker put his hand around a lightsaber, you immediately tense up. You want to ask Luke what he’s doing — he’s about to make a big move. But really, there is no such thing as a lightsaber — it is just a beam of light, a special effect that becomes real in the hands of a skilled actor,” Mathews said. “There is such a trust the audience puts into a movie, and that makes it a great platform to make a true difference.”

For Mathews, the defining moment that has sparked his passion and future aspirations involved a Christmas gift he received from his mother a few years ago.

“I got the movie ‘The Revenant’ with Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy, and as I watched it, I found myself doing so for more than pure entertainment. I took notice of the camera work, the costumes and effects and all that was going into it,” he said. “It amazed me. I decided I wanted to learn how to do that — it transformed my life.”

Mathews, just this past week, auditioned and was accepted into the very selective New York Film Academy — receiving a $10,000 talent-based scholarship based off his audition which included two 90-second monologues and an interview.

“Theater has helped me discover who I am — it has helped me learn how to express myself and how to learn about myself through these unique characters,” he said. “Plus, being in theater provides an amazing community — I’ve met some of my best friends through theater and know these people really have my back.”

Hare, meanwhile, recently auditioned for the East Carolina School of Theatre and Dance, and plans to do the same at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Marrara has applied to eight different schools for theater, while Willoughby has a completely different game plan after graduating.

“I am moving to Los Angeles and will be auditioning with different television and film talent agencies,” she said. “According to everyone I talked to in the industry, you can’t do anything until you get there.”

A few years ago, she auditioned with the AMTC (Actors, Models & Talent for Christ) talent agency, and got a call back.

“I spent a couple of months training with acting and modeling coaches, and at the end of the training, I was invited to a talent show case event in New York where there were several acting schools, other actors and a variety of agents,” she said. “I got to showcase my talent for them and they helped me learn a lot about the industry, including how to create a professional resume and what it takes to make a career of this.”

Marrara decided to major in theater more recently after a series of successful performances in Lewisburg school productions and specifically some guidance from a teacher.

“I started working with a voice teacher, and I brought up to her that I thought about taking my acting to the next level,” he said. “She responded by saying I was very capable and it was a real inspiration for me.”

As it was for the other three, the foundation built via school musicals and plays was crucial for Marrara’s self development and building confidence.

“There is this sense of fulfillment on the stage,” he said. “After all the hard work and long hours, you stand in front of your community and they are applauding you — that means the world to someone like me and the others. We couldn’t do it without the support from our community.”

Willoughby agreed.

“It is powerful knowing that something you did with your friends and extended theater family can bring together the community — and to know that everyone is there cheering you on, wanting you to succeed,” she said.

For that to happen, the people within the communities throughout the Valley need to carve out some time to support their school productions, Hare urged.

“Even if your kid isn’t in it. Even if you are at home and have no one attending the school. Honestly, it helps so much to have the audience,” he said. “It motivates the cast members. We want to do the show for you guys. It helps us get to know our community while helping pump us up — and you never know, it could lead to something more.”

For Marrara, Willoughby, Mathews, Hare — and the hundreds of others involved in these shows — that “something more” could include a successful future on stage or behind the camera.

“So many people dream of making it to Broadway, to move around the country and even do a tour while performing, living in the moment and not worrying about anything else. That is what I want to do,” Hare said. “It all starts here — on the school stage. We would love for you to be a part of that.”