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05/06/2020 09:30 AMThe show must go on. Faced with social distancing requirements that prevent large gatherings, a local theater company has found a way to offer free Zoom classes to keep kids involved in their artistic pursuits.
Kidz Konnection, a youth theater company that is based in Clinton, was founded in 2006 by Laura Attanasio. Every year, the group stages several performances enjoyed by performers and the community alike.
Attanasio said on March 11 the group was just two days away from opening night on its production of Matilda when disaster struck: The play had to be canceled in order to respect social distancing guidelines instituted due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
“I was very disappointed. We had a full house sold,” Attanasio said of the decision to cancel.
Understandably upset with the news, Attanasio bought a Zoom account—a video teleconferencing application—and started hosting free sessions so that kids can have social interaction in a medium they enjoy. Best of all: The free classes will run the rest of the spring, Attanasio said.
Attanasio said she was inspired to offer the free Zoom classes because she wanted to keep people’s spirits up during this time of uncertainty.
“The arts are such a critical part of being a healthy well-rounded person,” she said.
So far, the virtual classes have been a hit where kids can nurture their “blossoming creativity.”
“Kids desperately want that social interaction as much as anyone. We’ll get 60 kids in a Zoom room and they just want to be together,” Attanasio said.
The classes offered by Kidz Konnection includes creative writing, Shakespeare, contemporary dance, tap/jazz for the teen/tween beginner, improvisation, and scene study.
As for the planned stage productions of Matilda the Musical, Aladdin, Rock of Ages, and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, those will all be held in the future, starting with Matilda.
Attanasio said that the plan is to host a virtual livestream event for the shows. In order to accomplish this, the company will partner with a production company to bring the whole cast into one Zoom room together on one screen, similar to the popular videos celebrities have been putting together during this time. The dates have yet to be determined for the livestreams, though Attansaio anticipated it would start in June.
The free virtual classes will last until early July, at which point Attanasio the theater will start to charge for classes in order to pay staff. The summer classes will include new course offerings in animation, voiceover work, and creative writing taught by “Zoom-keepers,” as Attanasio calls them. The courses will be designed so that in the event the stay-at-home orders are lifted, the classes can be held in person.
While Kidz Konnection has found a way to keep its students happy, Attanasio is worried about the hit the arts community as a whole could take because of the virus.
“I think arts are going to be the hardest hit because large gatherings may not happen again until 2021,” she said. “It’s devastating. The arts are so important to people’s mental health.”
For more information, visit kidzkonnectionct.org or visit the Facebook page Kidz Konnection Inc.