Young actors show their maturity
Performers learn much more than just their lines when they take on a role
As the eager young actors take the stage, parents' faces in the audience light up with proud smiles. "It just gives me goose bumps," says Tim Fawcett, as he watches his 11-year-old son Freddie and another boy, Sebastian Clifford, share the leading role of Oliver in the annual musical production of the Hong Kong Youth Arts Foundation (HKYAF).
"I feel incredibly proud," Fawcett says.
Auditions for the popular musical based on Charles Dickens' novel Oliver Twist started in May, after which 72 out of more than 800 young enthusiasts aged between nine and their early 20s were chosen for parts.
What followed was months of rigorous rehearsals for two or three nights a week at HKYAF's studio. The cast would finish school at 3pm, have an hour or two to catch up on homework and grab a bite, then rush to the studio by 6pm. The rehearsals finished at 9pm.
For the youngsters, juggling schedules meant a lot of give and take in terms of what they could do after school and on weekends. Timetables had to be planned carefully to include food and rest, and time for homework. Sometimes it meant joining fewer club activities, missing out on a much-loved school fair, or a field trip where everyone else in the class would be going.
Both Fawcett and Tansy Wainwright, mother of the other Oliver actor, Sebastian, say the key is to be as open as possible, and reason with the children so that they get their priorities in order and make correct decisions. "Freddie has been very mature throughout the process," Fawcett says. "What also amazes me is that a guy of 11 years of age would wake up 6am to get to school, and then would be at rehearsals until 9pm two or three nights a week.