Children’s Theatre Of Annapolis Creates An Underwater Adventure In “Finding Nemo Jr.”

This month, Children’s Theatre of Annapolis will dive into the big blue for performances of “Finding Nemo Jr.,” a musical adaptation of the 2003 animated movie.

Nine-year-old Hannah Koloski, who plays Nemo in the show and dreams of acting on Broadway, was inspired to get into acting by a Disney classic.

“I was in first grade and my mom told me there were tryouts for the show ‘Aladdin,’” Hannah said. “I thought that sounded kind of fun because I had never been able to play before. After I did that show, I kind of thought that that’s just what I wanted to do, because I really had enjoyed it.”

Hannah has been in four plays, all small workshops and musicals. “Finding Nemo Jr.” will be the biggest production that she’s done to date.

John Lyons also aspires to act on Broadway or go into TV or film. The 12-year-old plays the other half of the clownfish duo, Marlin.

His inspiration to act came from the “Harry Potter” movies.

“I was watching, I think it was a documentary about ‘Harry Potter,’” John said. “They were talking about how young these kids were that were playing the characters, and I said, ‘Hey, if they can do that, why can’t I?’”

John performed in six plays before “Finding Nemo.”

“I think this show has a lot more excitement and a lot more backstory than the other shows I have done,” he said. “It also has a lot more sad parts. There are a lot of, like, really deep, meaningful parts in the show, unlike any show I’ve done before.”

To prepare for their roles, the cast of kids goes to three rehearsals per week, two shorter ones on weekdays and one longer one on the weekend.

“It’s kind of hard, because I have to be non-stop practicing to get ready and I also have to come prepared with a lot of other things, like my script and a pencil,” Hannah said. “I kind of just need to be ready to get on the stage and be memorized and all that stuff, because we’re already past the memorizing lines.”

Director Jordyne Hebron lets the kids have input into some aspects of what they’re working on, such as backstories.

“I believe it helps inform what they do onstage, and it makes it 10 times more powerful,” Hebron said. “As a director, I try to not say, ‘This is what it should be.’ I like to hear their ideas and sort of guide them in that process, because I want them to have ownership of their character.”

John enjoys how he and the actors and staff can transform and add new dimensions to a familiar story.

“When you first watch ‘Finding Nemo,’ you say, ‘OK, this is a good movie,’” he said. “Then when you get onstage, and then you perform it, it’s two different things. It’s a lot more powerful and meaningful than you think it would be.”

The backstage crew also helps the kids in their roles.

“When we direct our own crew, the cast can kind of look at what we’re doing and see what they’re supposed to be doing,” said River Wyatt, a member of the tech crew.

This show will use puppets, which presents a unique set of challenges for the actors.

“You have to make them breathe and talk and sing and all that other crazy stuff,” Hannah said.

Despite the challenges, the kids have handled the use of puppets well.

“As an adult, when I was first trained how to use puppets, I struggled, but they are handling it like champs,” Hebron said.

The kids have been practicing all of the elements together from the beginning instead of working on music first, followed by other elements including blocking and dancing.

Music director Jamie Levine explained that this style of rehearsal has helped them to be able to do full runs of the play a handful of times already, something that they’d usually only start a couple weeks before the play opens.

“They have been able to really get a lot of runs in and that helps them - especially because they’re younger - just really build their characters, and kind of with the consistency of doing it again and again,” Levine said.

To help with consistency, Levine also provides the kids with practice tracks so that children not yet able to read sheet music can still practice by listening and repeating what they hear. She also helps them remember when to breathe during the songs.

“If the choreographer tells you to do a turn on the fourth beat, it’s the same thing with the breathing, and you want to know where you’re breathing and breathe in the same places every time you sing the song,” Levine said.

The staff also offers encouragement.

“They have a lot of friends on the crew, so often we’re there for emotional support and we always cheer for them at the end of the shows and congratulate them at the end of their scenes,”  Wyatt said.

The play will run Fridays through Sundays starting on May 16 and ending on June 1. On Saturday, May 24, CTA will have a relaxed, sensory-friendly performance at 11:00am  and an ASL interpreted show at 4:00pm. Learn more and find tickets at www.childrenstheatreofannapolis.org.