Young performing artists of all types gathered at the New Castle Playhouse to showcase their talents. Dancers, singers and musicians were all represented at the 21st annual Stars of Tomorrow show.
This annual winter production is a way for young performers from four Ohio counties, like Mercer, and neighboring hosting states, to show off their skills. There’s no doubt that all the talent involved in the show are putting forth hard work and training leading up to the event. The participants vary in age from 8 to 18 years old. Even the master of ceremonies is a student from a local performing arts school.
This year’s production showcased 83 talents during the Stars of Tomorrow performance, allowing kids to showcase their areas of talent in acting, dance and music. Another 35 younger performers known as ‘mini stars’ had their own show within the Stars of Tomorrow, and 15 additional students performed in the All Star Jazz segment.
Seven area dance schools and academies sent their best performers and dance groups to perform specifically for this event.
In previous years, this event has produced talents that went onto becoming successful in the pop music industry, and this year there were talks about another breakthrough artist. One of the Stars of Tomorrow performers later went on to compete on America’s Got Talent.
Another young talent that received a lot of recognition was a senior from Shenango High School, who is said to already be traveling across the country with a professional dance group.
Another young dancer who recently won a county prestigious award performed an award winning piece that night. She is said to have also gone on to win a state pageant in the northeast, and has plans to compete in more programs this summer, not to mention a visit to the White House.
The New Castle Playhouse’s younger talent show was founded in 2002 and, although it is part of the Stars of Tomorrow production, it showcases its own group of tiny stars in the making. This year’s theme for the young performers revolves around patriotism
Founders of the Stars of Tomorrow stressed the importance of this event not being a competition, but a way for young performers to show off their talents. Whether that means to get practice on stage or hoping to get noticed, it all plays a role in each performer’s growth. With such a huge pool of talent in the area, not everyone can be part of the Stars of Tomorrow, so all the talents are chosen through an audition process.
Every year, $500 in cash is given to a performer participating in the event with the highest SAT score. This year’s scholarship was presented to seven Mini Stars and presented by a mother-daughter duo.
The show’s founder said that the Stars of Tomorrow production has been around 21 years and has featured over 2,000 children on their stage. The show and pool of talent continues to grow with each passing year. Many of the young performers even go on to have professional careers in the performing arts.
