Mikaela Anderson, left, playing Mulan, and Yukino Sokolik, right, playing Mushu act on stage during dress rehearsals for 'Mulan Jr.' Tuesday afternoon at the Evergreen Playhouse.
The Theatre of Arts Discipline (TOAD) is presenting Disney’s Mulan Jr. at the Evergreen Playhouse.
Director Rich Garrett, co-founder of TOAD, is joined by music director Brynn Walker to bring the family friendly production into local theater.
“TOAD is a company me and my wife started nine years ago. We focused on mainly youth theater projects and we look at it as an opportunity to teach kids all aspects of theater,” said Garrett. “We teach them the whole thing and we roll it all into one show.”
Mulan Jr. isn’t just a play but also a workshop for kids to learn and experience all aspects of theater, having many of the roles both on and off stage strongly student-driven.
“We believe that we have high expectations for our students because they can absolutely achieve them and most often surpass our expectations,” said Garrett. “For example, the choreography that they do is not easy for them, but we believe in them and believe that they can do it, so they can believe in themselves and put on this fantastic show.”
Students come from all around the South Puget Sound to attend the Centralia-based theater camps.
“I live in Lacey and whenever we come up (to Centralia) it’s fun and exciting and I get to sing loud,” said Yukino Sokolik, playing Mushu, “You don’t get to choose your part, but if you like a part you can work really hard for it.”
The story follows the classic Disney tale of Mulan, however lacking special effects. Garrett made it his mission to tell the full story in a whole new way.
“Here we have to tell the story without the aid of Disney magic. We have to piece the story together so in that it adds a few extra numbers that are not in the movie,” Garrett said. “That way the audience won’t only get to see what they’ve come to expect, but also extra stuff that tells the story in just a slightly different manner.”
Performance dates are Aug. 3-4 at 7:30 p.m. with a Sunday matinee Aug. 5 at 2 p.m. at The Evergreen Playhouse located at 226 W. Center St. in Centralia.
