Jennifer Leto has dreams of playing Ariel on stage in "The Little Mermaid." This month, she's traveling around Broward with other teens to perform in another classic, "Cinderella."
Leto, 17, is part of the Young Professionals, a summer drama camp organized by the Broward Center for the Performing Arts. The teens ages 13 to 18 joined the group through an audition process and have been rehearsing a one-hour version of the Rodgers and Hammerstein version of "Cinderella," which they'll be taking on the road for a total of 16 performances in Miramar, Fort Lauderdale and Aventura.
"They'll have the experience of touring and being a repertory company," said Jill Kratish, the Broward Center's director of programming.
For Leto, performing in the summer drama camp is nothing new, and she's already got performances in "Aladdin," Beauty and the Beast" and "High School Musical" under her belt. But the Young Professionals is a more focused experience, which includes a question-and-answer session with a touring cast currently performing at the Broward Center.
"I feel like I've learned how to be a better actor and more about the business," said Leto, of Miramar.
A highlight of the camp has been learning about the advertising process and topics like poster design, Leto said.
Kratish said it's common to have returning campers like Leto, so each summer, new shows are kept on rotation so that young actors aren't performing the same things over and over. Since the Young Professionals group is new, it'll also be their first time performing on tour for the public. With the drama camp's other groups, a single performance is staged at the end of camp for family and friends.
"They'll get an idea of what it's like to perform the same show 16 times and have to keep up that energy and enthusiasm," Kratish said.
Campers keep busy throughout the six-week program and spend more time on rehearsal as the shows draw nearer. Kratish said the show's roles have been double cast, so actors like Leto will spend half the tour playing one character before switching off with someone else.
"I'm excited to have a wider audience and go to different places," Leto said.
Tickets for shows at all venues are $10. Shows start July 12.
For more information, visit http://www.browardcenter.org.
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