Dreamcatcher Junior Receives Support From Investors Foundation

Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre, professional Theatre in Residence at Oakes Center in Summit, received a grant from the Investors Bank Foundation in support of their summer youth program, Dreamcatcher Junior, which takes place in the month of July.

Dreamcatcher Junior is a three-week theatre experience for students in grades 5 through 12 that combines building skills through study with theatre professionals with the opportunity for students to create and perform their own play. Under the guidance of Sandy Fenelus (Elizabeth), director, the participants brainstorm characters, relationships and storylines, ultimately writing the script that will become their unique show. Musical director Vanessa Parvin (Maplewood) and choreographer Brianna Randall (Linden) also bring their expertise to the collaborative project.

Each summer's production is original and created entirely within the three weeks of the program. This summer's project was entitled "Pick Your Poison," a murder mystery that dealt in a humorous way with the students' struggles with their own identities and quest for "perfection." Scenes and songs were woven together to tell their story, culminating in the solution of the mystery and a "where are they now?" finale.

The support of the Investors Foundation was used to provide scholarship funds for eligible students in the program. Each year, Dreamcatcher supplements tuition for a limited number of students based on financial need, and this support is essential to the company's ability to offer aid. The Investors Foundation assists organizations in New Jersey, New York City and Long Island that invigorate their local communities with civic-minded initiatives focused on the arts, education, health and human services, youth programs and more.

For information on this or any of Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre's programs, please visit www.dreamcatcherrep.org or contact Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre at Oakes Center, 120 Morris Avenue, Summit, NJ 07901, 908-514-9654.

About Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre:

Dreamcatcher was founded in 1994 and is a non-profit professional ensemble of actors who build community with the audience by sharing contemporary, life-affirming stories that challenge, energize and entertain. Our work has at its heart a belief in the essential goodness of people and the power of live performance to connect people through our shared humanity. We expose theatregoers to ideas and lives like and unlike their own with the intention of awakening their imaginations and creating empathy for others. We deepen the experience of all our patrons with personal contact through receptions, talkbacks, and interactive programs.

The company's activities include mainstage productions, improvisational comedy and cabarets, new play readings and a variety of educational and senior outreach programs.

Dreamcatcher's programs are funded by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation and many other corporations, foundations and individuals. Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre is an Equity Producing member of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance.

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