Acting for Young People

“Adventures in Whoville” and “Horton’s Whos” open TODAY! We can’t wait to watch our Minis & Adventures actors shine!

A sneak peek from inside the AFYP rehearsal room. We’re so excited to open Seussical tomorrow!

Announcing our Spring 2023 Acting Showcases with Mason Community Arts Academy!

We are so excited to be returning to another favorite title: Disney’s BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, JR!

Our Musical and Advanced Actor’s Showcase groups will work on “Beauty and the Beast, Jr.”

Our Mini Actors will work on “The Enchanted Castle” and our Young Actors will work on “Enchanted Adventures”, two programs inspired by the characters from the classic animated film.

Registration opens December 7th! More information available at www.AFYP.org

Thank you all for your support of our "25 for 25" campaign and our TIME TO SHINE program on this ! We are so proud and excited to be able to connect with our students and share our love of theater!

To contribute to our "25 for 25" campaign and to learn more about our TIME TO SHINE program, please visit: https://www.afyp.org/25-for-25-fundraiser

This , we are featuring our TIME TO SHINE program. In honor of our 25th anniversary this year, we are holding our "25 for 25" campaign to support TIME TO SHINE.

This program is designed for students attending Title I elementary schools in Fairfax County. The program integrates practical life skills with performing arts skills, leading to more confident individuals that feel it is possible to change their future by working hard and embracing the opportunities presented to them.

To support TIME TO SHINE and our "25 for 25" campaign, please follow the link in our bio.

This , we are featuring our TIME TO SHINE program. In honor of our 25th anniversary this year, we are holding our "25 for 25" campaign to support TIME TO SHINE. In addition to funding two full year TIME TO SHINE programs, this campaign would also provide 70 additional scholarships for students to attend our award-winning after school programs in 2023; and allow us to commission an inclusivity-themed script to be performed by our students in our after school programs.

To support TIME TO SHINE and our "25 for 25" campaign, please visit: https://www.afyp.org/25-for-25-fundraiser

This , we are featuring our TIME TO SHINE program. In honor of our 25th anniversary this year, we are holding our "25 for 25" campaign to support TIME TO SHINE. This campaign would fully fund year-long programs (three 8-week class sessions) at two different schools, bringing acting classes and food support to 50 students.

To support TIME TO SHINE and our "25 for 25" campaign, please visit: https://www.afyp.org/25-for-25-fundraiser

This , we are featuring our TIME TO SHINE program. In honor of our 25th anniversary this year, we are holding our "25 for 25" campaign to support TIME TO SHINE. Throughout today, we'll be sharing reflections from our teachers and administrators at our schools. To support TIME TO SHINE and our "25 for 25" campaign, please visit: https://www.afyp.org/25-for-25-fundraiser

We have a 25th anniversary twin! "The Lion King" opened on Broadway 25 years ago, in 1997. Students in our TIME TO SHINE class at Dogwood Elementary worked on a production of "The Lion King KIDS", an adaptation of the Broadway musical.

Our TIME TO SHINE program provides tuition-free acting classes and food assistance for students at risk of food insecurity in local Title I schools. In honor of our 25th anniversary, we are raising funds for our through our "25 for 25" campaign to support future TIME TO SHINE programs.

https://www.afyp.org/25-for-25-fundraiser

Thank you Washington Parent Magazine for featuring us in your latest issue, Big Milestones for Local Children's Theaters! We are so proud to be celebrating our 25th anniversary this year!

https://washingtonparent.advanced-pub.com/?issueID=31&pageID=14

Our Advanced Acting students with Mason Community Arts Academy had a blast in their master class, led by Virginia Opera’s Resident Scholar Joshua Borths! Using scenes and songs from “The Pirates of Penzance”, recently performed at Center for the Arts at George Mason University, Josh taught our students how the operetta style has influenced contemporary musical theater from “The Music Man” to “Hamilton.”

We just couldn’t narrow down our favorite photos, so we’re back for Flashback Friday 😉

A little Thursday Throwback to last Spring’s productions of “Into the Woods, Jr”!

Our TIME TO SHINE program brings theater and support to students at Title One Schools, teaching life skills alongside acting skills. In honor of AFYP’s 25th anniversary, we are running our 25-for-25 campaign for our TIME TO SHINE program. More information can be found at https://www.afyp.org/25-for-25-fundraiser

We are so excited to be bringing back our one-day workshops with Mason Community Arts Academy!

Registration is now open for our one day "School's Out: Improv Workshop" for ages 5-9 & 10-14, held Friday, November 11! 🎭

This workshop focuses on the importance of improv and the rules that go into acting without a script. And of course, students will learn through lots of fun games and activities!

More info: https://masonacademy.gmu.edu/.../schools-out-improv.../

First day of blocking in the books for SEUSSICAL at Mason Community Arts Academy!

(Peep the throwback ☕️🧚‍♂️)

We have a few spots left in our Mini Actors Showcase with ! Our littlest actors (ages 5-6) will be working on “Horton’s Whos,” inspired by the stories and characters from Dr. Seuss! Classes start on September 10! Will we see you this Fall?

🎶 “Didja hear, didja hear, didja didja hear?!”🎶

Announcing our Fall Showcases with Mason Community Arts Academy!

Our Musical (ages 9-15) & Advanced (ages 13-18) Showcase students will be working on SEUSSICAL, JR. Our Mini Actors (ages 5-6) and Young Actors (ages 7-8) will be working on Seuss-inspired shows in HORTON’S WHOS and ADVENTURES IN WHOVILLE.

Registration will open on July 26th. More information can be found on our website.

Fun fact: AFYP first performed Seussical in Fall 2015! We are so excited to work on this production again, with new designs and new students!

Students from the 2015, what is your favorite memory from that show?

Last week, we held our first Improv Comedy Workshop and we had tons of fun! Students learned long-form and short-form improv and worked on comedy sketches, games, and stand-up.

“HI!”

Our Teen Acting Ensemble is polishing up their production of ‘PUFFS’ for a special, free performance at 7pm on Friday, June 17 (tomorrow!) at the GMU Harris Theater.

Our actors arrived bright and early Monday morning, and have auditioned, rehearsed, memorized, found props and costumes, and prepared a final show in just 5 days!

‘PUFFS’ is a clever and inventive play that gives you a new look at a familiar adventure from the perspective of three potential heroes just trying to make it through a magic school that proves to be very dangerous for children. Alongside them are the Puffs, a group of well-meaning, loyal outsiders with a thing for badgers. Their hilariously heartfelt and epic journey takes the classic story to new places and reimagines what a boy wizard hero can be.

(Puffs is not authorized, sanctioned, licensed or endorsed by J.K Rowling, Warner Bros. or any person or company associated with the Harry Potter books, films or play.)

**Please note that this performance is rated PG and does depict—however cartoonishly—character deaths from the full series of 7 books.

to our AMAZING performances of Into the Woods JR last weekend! 💙

Can't wait to see our favorite Summer Camp teachers in just a few weeks!

Our 5th Annual Student Playwrights Festival is TOMORROW! We will be featuring 8 new plays by students ages 5-18 this year.

Our Weekly Acting Camps run for five weeks every summer. Each session is tailored to a theme that inspires each week's script, activities, and performance. Students are welcome to attend multiple weeks to experience new activities and games!

Which week do you want to attend?

Countdown to summer is on! Less than 55 days to go! Will we see you at summer camp?

to Seussical JR, Seuss Adventures, & Horton's Whos!

✨NEW!✨ for Summer 2022: introducing our Teen Acting Ensemble!

Ms. Rebecca returns to lead a team of actors in putting on a production of popular Off-Broadway play PUFFS.

This clever and inventive play gives you a new look at a familiar adventure from the perspective of three potential heroes just trying to make it through a magic school that proves to be very dangerous for children. Alongside them are the Puffs, a group of well-meaning, loyal outsiders with a thing for badgers. Their hilariously heartfelt and epic journey takes the classic story to new places and reimagines what a boy wizard hero can be.

Spots are filling up in our Summer Acting Camps with Mason Community Arts Academy! Make sure to snag yours soon!

We are so excited to share the titles in our 5th annual Student Playwright Festival!

These scripts were written by students ages 7-17 and will be presented in a staged reading, featuring AFYP teachers and actors, on May 1 at the Stacy C. Sherwood Community Center. The event is part of the Fairfax, Spotlight on the Arts Festival.

Congratulations to our selected playwrights and thank you to our many submitters for sharing your scripts and stories with us!

Who is ready for summer? We can't wait! https://masonacademy.gmu.edu/acting/summer/camp-sessions/

It was such a jolly holiday with Mary Poppins JR, The Little Chimney Sweeps, and London Adventures!

Although the Baker and The Baker's Wife are some of the protagonists in Into the Woods, they are not traditional fairy tale characters. They are inspired from the beginning of the original Grimm's version of "Rapunzel", but were developed specifically for the musical.
📸 Pictured
1 - 2014 film
2 - Original Broadway Cast

Our award-winning Summer Acting Camps with Mason Community Arts Academy are open for registration. This year we are offering five weeks of In-Person Acting Camps, as well as specialty programs in Advanced Acting, Improv, and Musical Theater. More information can be found at https://masonacademy.gmu.edu/acting/summer/camp-sessions/

to both of our past productions of ACE DIAMOND: FAIRYTALE DETECTIVE. This play had its world premiere in our Advanced Actors' Summer Showcase and then was adapted for a fully virtual production last Spring.

Many people love Rapunzel because of Disney’s animated film Tangled, but she is a truly classic fairy tale character like the others in Into the Woods! How would you design Rapunzel’s iconic hair for Into the Woods (which someone must actually climb - on stage!!)
📸 Pictured
1 - 2014 film
2 - Original Broadway Cast
3 - Ford’s Theatre

Due to inclement weather, all Showcase classes have been cancelled for March 12.

Students, please practice your lines, songs, and choreography at home. Check your emails for further information. We’ll see you next week!

We're bringing back Throwback Thursdays by revisiting the Fall of 2019, when we worked on Shrek JR, Shrek Adventures, and The Little Ogres!

What show should we look back on next week?

The story of Cinderella is one of the most beloved and adapted tales of all time. She is a prominent character in Into the Woods. How many of these Cinderella stories have you seen or read?
📸 Pictured
AFYP’s 2016 production of Cinderella 101
1 - Brandy and Whitney Houston in Rogers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (1997)
2 - Camilla Cabello and Billy Porter in Cinderella (2021)
3 - Disney’s Cinderella (1950)
4 - Gail Carson Levine’s novel Ella Enchanted