High School Music Theatre Camp at Muskingum University

Muskingum University held their 17th annual High School Summer Music Theatre Camp Performances in the Thompson Theatre on campus today.

35 high school students took the stage in Caldwell hall to perform a collection of musical numbers from various musical shows. Today they performed to a full how with a show was a week in the making.

“We have a very rigorous camp and we go from their arrival on Sunday afternoon. We have a lot of fun but we also do a lot of singing, a lot of memory work, we do dance classes every day, we have voice lessons, we have master classes, we have fun at meals, we have lots of party stuff in the evening. By party stuff I mean it’s gathering but its large motor. So it helps them relax after their days of activity. We have square dancing or water balloons or musical movies, something like that,” said Carol Wilcox Jones, the camp director.

Todays performances included 15 songs from musicals like Dear Even Hansen, Shrek the Music, and the Disney movie Hercules. Any students interested in participating in next years camp can visit Muskingum’s website to learn more about the registration process.

“People have to apply. They don’t just walk in. So our students have an application process, they have to have a letter of recommendation from their teacher or someone who knows them and their skill. There is a fee of course. I try to help as much scholarship support as I can and then I ask them to send me two examples of their singing so that gives me a hint as to how I’m going to build the program,” Jones said.

The High School Music Theatre Camp is made possible in part by the Ohio Arts Council which is a state agency that funds and supports quality arts experiences in Ohio communities culturally, educationally, and economically. Other supporters of the camp included the Cambridge Kiwanis Foundation, the Cambridge Singers Scholarship Fund, and Carol’s CAMP Scholarship.