After many years of working with The City of Federal Way at the Knutzen Family Theatre, Holly Rose has created her own musical theatre group at a new venue. With the support and aid of many community members and groups, Rosebud Children’s Theatre Conservatory will start its season July 5th.

With a B.F.A. in Musical Theatre under her belt, Rose has also undergone advanced training at the American Musical & Dramatic Academy in New York. She has performed onstage as well as directed numerous plays and musicals. For the past 20 years, she has directed many children’s workshops and children’s theatre programs in Minnesota, Chicago, NYC and right here in Federal Way. Six years ago, Rose started the Summer Youth Musical Theatre program through Centerstage. This past year, after management was outsourced to a private theatre company, Rose decided to create her own program with the help of the parents of those she has worked with before.

“The parents of all those kids believed in what we were doing so much and wanted to see the program continue,” she said. “I feel so blessed to have such a fabulously talented staff of professional theatre artists and musicians who all feel the same way.”

Rosebud will offer five age-specific classes this summer. Rehearsals will now be held at the Federal Way United Methodist Church at 29645 51st Avenue South, as will performances for Raffi Taffi and What D’ya Wanna Do. Performances for The Big Bad Musical and Fiddler on the Roof will be held at Thomas Jefferson High School.

Raffi Taffi, aimed for children aged four to seven, started daily rehearsals July 5th and will culminate in a free performance on the 16th. This mini-musical is about a group of friends who have a sleep over, and will cover anything that might happen.

What D’ya Wanna Do? also aimed at children age four to seven, will start July 19th and perform for the community on the 30th. Silly songs, dances and attitudes will be abundant to keep spirits always high.

The Big Bad Musical, for children aged 8 to 12, started July 5th and will run rehearsals until the 30th. The Big Bad Wolf stands trial for the many lawsuits against him as fairy-tale world shows its colors! There will have three performances at the end of the month.

Fiddler on the Roof is for teenagers aged 13 to 19, and will run from July 5th to August 6th, with six performances over two weekends. The musical, set in 1905, is set in the small Jewish village Anatevka, and tells the tale of dairyman Tevye and his attempts to preserve traditions in a rapidly modernizing world.

Finally, the Cabaret Class that Rosebud offers is for those 20 years of age and older, and runs from July 5th to August 6th, with two performances in August. A theatrical study of Cabaret style will use professional examples and techniques.

“Theatre offers opportunity for self-expression combined with creativity. It takes the whole case working as a team to bring true life to a production,” Rose said. “Each individual character needs another individual character to communicate with whom in turn, needs another and so on. By working together towards a common goal, cast members learn much needed skills in what it takes to truly communicate with others and to work towards a common goal.”

To learn more about these programs, visit Rosebud’s website at http://www.rosebudctc.org.