A beloved musical will come to life this weekend when Pismo Beach students take to the stage to perform Annie Jr.
Around 50 students from Coastal Christian School have been rehearsing for about two months for the show, which is taking place Saturday, May 13 at the Clark Center in Arroyo Grande.
Michelle Bardsley, producer/communications, is helping with the play and says it takes a lot of volunteers, help and discipline from the kids to put on the spring show.
Students from 4th to 12th grade are involved.
“We have some little ones out here and it encourages them and they look up to the older kids, but it is a time commitment. We have a lot of parent volunteers, we have a lot of people showing up to get the job done, but overall it’s a great experience for them to get out there, act and show what they can do and just build a community really,” Bardsley said.
She says money raised from ticket sales, concessions or the silent auction all goes back to the growing performing arts department, adding that the performers have been having a great time.
“It’s an expression for kids. Not everyone’s great at sports, not everyone’s great at certain things but arts is always something that I think kids can find something in arts whether it singing, dancing, acting but there’s a place for everyone in arts and like I said, it’s a community and everyone finds a place in it,” Bardsley added.
Sixth grader Braylin Barton plays orphan Annie in the production and says they’ve been working for about two months on the show.
“I love dancing and singing and this is all the stuff that I love,” she said. “It’s a lot of hard work and effort that you put into the show to make it awesome.”
Barton, 11, says her favorite part is singing “Tomorrow,” because she “gets to be with the dog and the dog is amazing.”
You can catch Annie at two different times on Saturday. The first performance takes place at 2 p.m. with the second happening at 7 p.m.
Tickets can be purchased at the Clark Center box office.
Bardsley says there are still plenty of seats available.
