What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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Like Gabel, Calaway says the movie was a favorite childhood memory of hers. "Of course I was a fan!" she says with a laugh. "Like every other little girl, I dressed up as Dorothy for Halloween, and it was always very special for me. I always admired Judy Garland and have since I was a little kid, so when the opportunity arose, I thought, 'I'm going to take this chance.' I was extremely excited." For actor Sean Thorup, who plays Dorothy's Uncle Henry, this is his second time playing a character much out of his age range at Arts Live — over the summer, he played the role of Charlie's Uncle Joe in Arts Live's production of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." "One of my key ways of getting into character is putting myself in the mindset of the time," says Thorup of his character work. "You can get a lot of information from the script, just sitting there for 15 or 20 minutes, thinking about, 'Why would I make that choice?' Thinking about, 'What is my purpose? Why am I here?' That helps you unravel this character bit by bit, and, by the end of the rehearsal period, you've got a full character that you've developed." That sounds like pretty advanced script analysis for a 16-year-old, and Thorup says that's just one of the skills he's picked up in his 10 years of working in classes and on productions at Arts Live Theatre. In fact, when he and Calaway talk about what the performing arts have meant to them as they've grown up, the preternatural calm and focus these kids show in rehearsal starts to make more sense. "One of the main benefits that I've gotten from theater is definitely the skill of communication, which is so important today in our world," he says. "It's such a valuable lesson. Also, being able to control how nervous or fearful you get has been a big help in my life. Learning the words and vocabulary in your script can really help you on the SAT or ACT or when you're really reading into a text." "It made me feel more original," says Calaway frankly. She's a senior at Fayetteville High School this year, and she's carefully balancing her school work and her job at Starbucks in order to make time for theater. "In a town like Fayetteville, a lot of people go to the University of Arkansas, and they live a very similar lifestyle. By having the arts, I was able to find my own voice within the loud crowd and be the person I wanted to be and not follow the crowd. It was something I was good at, and I was always terrible at sports. My parents tried so hard to get me into sports, and I said, 'I just can't do it.' But once I found theater, I really came out of my shell. It's really helped me find self-confidence and find beauty and emotions in the little things." Back at rehearsal, as the cast launches into the third run-through of "Jitterbug" with every bit as much energy as they had the first time, it's easy to be charmed by their talent, hard work and camaraderie. In Thorup's summation of one of the underlying themes of "The Wizard of Oz," he could just as easily be talking about the act of producing theater itself. "It's so nice to see people come together — despite their differences — and work hard together, toward a common cause." www.garnerbuildingsupply.com 479-636-4151 True Value ® 10lb. Black Oil Sunflower Bird Seed Attracts a wide variety of wild birds. L 106 1181 20lb. Wild Bird Food General-purpose mix. L 501 22 1 Consumer responsible for taxes. While supplies last. 34.99 GSC ® Technologies 6 ft. Deluxe Folding Table 30x72-in. plastic resin table folds in half for easy storage. W 682 536 1 Steel Folding Chair, 13.99 225 lb. weight capacity. W 157 249 F6 4.99 YOUR CHOICE 38 WHAT'S UP! NOVEMBER 3-9, 2019 SPRINGDALE Wizard Continued From Page 5 Photo Courtesy Mark Landon Smith "You can't just be a carbon copy of Judy Garland," says Kayleigh Calaway of the challenges of playing the iconic role of Dorothy. "You have to find youself within the role and be your own version of Dorothy."