Sparkle on Stage re-animates "Nutcracker"

By Reine Bethany

rbethany@liherald.com

Freeport’s own youth theater group delighted friends and family last Sunday with a combined reading and enactment of Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffman’s 1816 novella, “The Nutcracker and the Mouse KIng.”

Hoffman’s piece formed the basis for P.I. Tchaikovsky’s renowned 1892 orchestral ballet opus, “The Nutcracker.”

Directed by Sparkle on Stage founder Robyn Workman, four youngsters assumed multiple roles, reading, acting, and dancing on the stage in the auditorium of the Freeport Memorial Library.

Kaci Carpenter, 13, Tatika Cepeda, 10, Dominicki deCampi, 9, and Alice Suazo, 7, carried their roles with aplomb. All of their voices projected clearly from behind the music stands that held their written parts. They stepped away from the music stands and executed their blocking or choreography with assurance as their roles demanded.

Workman, whose career as a performer and performance instructor spans 30 years, formed the youth theater group when the pandemic curtailed her efforts to assemble a board that would help her develop a cultural arts center in Freeport. She has arranged multiple opportunities for her group to display their talents throughout the summer and fall, with more performances to come. Go to SparkleonStage.org for further information.