Young Teens Unite in 'Best Buddies' Partnership

Doing shows with the Best Buddies program has been a great experience for myself and the rest of the company, and I look forward to continuing to work with them! Our performance of “Imagination Unlocked” in February at Hunter College was my first experience with Best Buddies, and the first OMB show ever for two of our actors, and I don’t think they could have hoped for a better experience. The students and faculty at HCHS are all helpful and supportive, and our friends at Rebecca School are an awesome audience!

Although I don’t get to see them outside of performances, I would absolutely say that the kids at Rebecca School are confident, funny, and outgoing. While we’re setting up for performances and striking our props and costumes afterwards, they come up to us, ask questions, and tell us how much they love when OMB comes to visit. Getting the chance to actually talk about the shows (or anything else) with the audience isn’t something all actors get to do, and it’s really meaningful. 

Only Make Believe has been partners with the Rebecca School for over ten years, so a lot of these kids have seen our programming before. Through long-term partnerships like this, we’re able to form a bond with these students and see their growth over time, as many of our long-time company members will tell you. It’s incredibly gratifying to walk into a school and see a group of students who are passionate about theater; it shows us that we’ve made an impression. Our programming is unique in that there are opportunities where the audience is encouraged to interact with the actors and take part in the story, and it’s awesome to watch kids take advantage of that and express themselves through singing, dancing, even gymnastics! This reaffirms our mission to encourage children to strengthen and explore their imagination through play, and it’s awesome to watch live. 

by Bonnie Christilaw