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HUNTINGTON UNIV MAGAZINE

Huntington to host Summer Theatre Youth Camp

FOR RELEASE March 12, 2008

(left to right) Josh White of Warren playing "President Roosevelt," Carlos Tellex of Huntington playing "Louis Howe," and Isaac Hill of Huntington playing a police officer in the summer 2007 production of "Annie Jr."

HUNTINGTON, IN—Are you looking for a different kind of summer camp? This summer, the Huntington University Department of Theatre Arts will host its third Huntington University Summer Theatre Youth Camp. From June 25-July 19, campers entering grades kindergarten through 12 in the fall will learn basic theatrical training from theatre professionals and perform a fully produced musical theatre production. This summer’s performance will be “Guys and Dolls Jr.,” and every camper will have a part.

“‘Guys and Dolls Jr.’ is a colorful and hilarious musical with memorable tunes like ‘Bushel and a Peck,’ ‘Adelaide’s Lament’ and ‘Luck Be a Lady,’ to name a few,” said Kristi Shamburger, one of the camp’s co-directors. “This is a redemptive story with lots of fun parts to be played.”

Melanie Lisinicchia of Huntington as "Annie"

The camp will run Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Huntington University Merillat Centre for the Arts with performances on July 19. Camp will not be held on July 4.

Cost is $175 per camper with a late registration fee of $25 after May 1. Space is limited to 50 campers. Brochures and registration forms will be given to area elementary and middle schools and will be available at the Merillat Centre for the Arts Box Office after March 15.

The camp continues to grow. In 2006, the first camp of 16 children performed “Music Man Jr.” In 2007, the camp’s enrollment for “Annie Jr.” more than doubled from the previous year.

David and Kristi Shamburger, Huntington University theatre faculty, serve as co-camp directors. The Shamburgers created and directed summer youth musical theatre camps in Georgia and have experience with the Nevada School of the Arts youth theatre programming. 

David believes the camp has advantages for university as well as the community – helping promote the university’s Department of Theatre Arts, assisting Huntington theatre students by providing camp positions, and most importantly, impacting the local community for Christ. “We are a Christ-centered university, and everything we do is through Him,” he said.

David most enjoys the enthusiasm and passion of the young actors. “To them it is magic,” he said. “I always try to get my actors to return to a sense of play. The children still have that, and it’s nice to work with.”

For more information, call David Shamburger at (260) 359-4257. To obtain a registration form after March 15, call the Merillat Centre for the Arts Box Office at (260) 359-4261 or log on to www.huntington.edu/theatre.

Huntington University is a comprehensive Christian college of the liberal arts offering graduate and undergraduate programs in more than 70 academic concentrations. U.S.News & World Report ranks Huntington among the best colleges in the Midwest. Founded in 1897 by the Church of the United Brethren in Christ, Huntington University is located on a contemporary, lakeside campus in northeast Indiana. The University is a member of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU).

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