T-R PHOTO BY LANA BRADSTREAM - Lenihan Intermediate Art Teacher Nick Beard sings an original song he wrote and plays the ukulele during rehearsal for Saturday’s variety show. In addition to original music, performers will show off their skills in acts such as juggling, skits and poetry.

Residents will display their talents to the public during the Marshalltown Community Theatre Kids’ Acting Academy Alumni and Friends Variety Show Performance.

After two sessions of auditions, 10 performers will provide 12 performances tomorrow at 7 p.m. at the Marshalltown High School (MHS) Performing Arts Center. Variety show Director Vanessa Engel said some of the performances will be surprises during the roughly one hour and 45-minute long family-friendly show. A few performers will do multiple things.

“There are two acts and a 15-minute intermission between,” she said. “We have enough performers and I think we have a good balance. I’m really excited. We have a lot of writers in this group, a lot of original talent.”

T-R PHOTO BY LANA BRADSTREAM – Jaleb Jay practices his juggling for the variety show on Saturday. He is one of 10 performers displaying their talents on Saturday. Proceeds from the show will go toward the Marshalltown Community Theater Kids’ Acting Academy performance of “Finding Nemo, Jr.” in 2025.

The variety show performers are:

Marshall County Brass Quintet, who will play three pieces;

Brothers Beckham and Lincoln McLeod, performing a skit;

Nick Beard, singing original songs and playing the ukulele. Beard is the art teacher at Lenihan Intermediate School;

Jaleb Jay, juggling. “He’s amazing,” Engel said;

Sammuel Wilder, original songs;

Izaiah Wilder, piano and poetry. Wilder placed second in the statewide Poetry Out Loud competition in 2023. He has also qualified for the Iowa Ambassadors of Music program, which will take him to locations overseas such as Paris, Salzburg and London. A GoFundMe page has been created to help fund his journey. “That kid is just mad-talented,” Engel said. “He blows my mind;”

Naysa Rottink, performing an original skit;

David Engel, singing original music and accompanied by Beard on the ukulele;

Amber Sorenson, doing a color guard routine. Sorenson is a member of the MHS color guard team;

Theresa Walton, performing a skit impersonating Julia Child.

Engel said she was hoping for six auditions, and was pleasantly surprised when almost double that amount showed up.

“Granted, it would be amazing to have tons of people show up, but at the same time this is our first [variety show] and it’s going to be wonderful,” she said. “We have a show, and I’m impressed by our teamwork.”

Everyone who auditioned got accepted into the show.

“They came in with pieces which were pretty polished,” she said. “Anything that needs a little tweaking, we have two days to play around with it. I’m just really excited and quite impressed with the level of talent that came in here from the Marshalltown area. They were here. They were professional and ready to go. They had fun and enthusiasm. It was really exciting to see different community members coming together to support Kids’ Acting Academy (KAA) and show off their talents, and show kids in the audience there are lots of different types of talents out there. It’s fun to be able to explore that in a safe, accepting space. That’s what we do in the Marshalltown Community Theater.”

Helping Engel ensure the show goes on were “collaborators” Lydia Lillibridge, who serves on the MCT Board of Directors, Sue Crawford and Jade Mauseth. Cookies will be sold at the variety show, which is also dedicated to Bill Roberts.

“At the beginning, we will be doing a dedication to Bill Roberts as he was an integral member of Kids’ Acting Academy,” Engel said. “He was here the first day Kids’ Acting Academy happened, working alongside Shannon Mitchell. This was originally started in 2014 with ‘Peter Pan.’ Bill will be very much missed.”

There will also be a “conversation” with the Jamie Christensen Fund for Performing Arts at the beginning of the evening regarding a donation to KAA. Engel said the audience will learn about the foundation and what things it supports.

“Basically, we are forming a partnership,” she said. “I am helping to publicize their foundation because they are giving us a donation. They give donations to different youth performers and different entities. They will be able to discuss that more. We’re extremely grateful to have them on board.”

In addition, Engel said they have received donations from the Arts and Children Together Foundation, the Marshalltown Youth Foundation (MYF), Morning Optimist Club, George Johnson and HyVee. Engel said MYF will pay for a third of the $60 fee for a child in need to enter KAA and HyVee will provide snacks for the children involved in the academy.

Tickets to the variety show are $10, and proceeds will be used for the KAA to put on a performance of “Finding Nemo, Jr.” in 2025.

“I think we will have the funds to put on a show and do it well,” Engel said. “We’re very excited. I am going to keep encouraging folks to donate to the cause so we can make sure it happens next year, and continue to make sure we are doing this every year.”

Donations for Kids’ Acting Academy can be sent to Marshalltown Community Theater, P.O. Box 923, Marshalltown, IA 50158.

“We are so grateful for the Marshalltown Community School District for allowing us to utilize this gorgeous space,” she said. “It is extremely nostalgic for me to do theater and this was a great opportunity to revel in this space. I’m loving every minute of it. So, thank you.”

EVENT INFORMATION

Name: Kids’ Acting Academy Alumni and Friends Variety Show Performance

Address: Marshalltown High School Performing Arts Center, 1602 S. Second Ave.

Date: Saturday

Time: 7 p.m.

Tickets: $10

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Contact Lana Bradstream at 641-753-6611 ext. 210 or lbradstream@timesrepublican.com.