- June 19, 2025
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Carys Di Silvestro, 9, and Gia Thress, 10, are in the audience waiting to see the costumes they designed for the show on stage.
Photo by Lesley DwyerBristen Dejarnette, the interim head of the Theatre Department at Woodland Fine Arts Academy, welcomes the audience.
Photo by Lesley DwyerElla Hochstetler plays Rafiki.
Photo by Lesley DwyerThe Woodland Fine Arts Academy's high school cast performs The Lion King Jr. May 2.
Photo by Lesley DwyerParley Hansen plays Mufasa.
Photo by Lesley DwyerAlexandra Mahiquez, Courtney Thompson and Chance Horvath star in The Lion King Jr. at the Woodland Fine Arts Academy May 2.
Photo by Lesley DwyerChance Horvath plays Simba.
Photo by Lesley DwyerElla Clark and Avonlea Konczal play the hyenas, Banzai and Shenzi.
Photo by Lesley DwyerBenjamin Hansen plays Scar.
Photo by Lesley DwyerAll of the masks, props and costumes are created by students in the program.
Photo by Lesley DwyerA gazelle leaps across the stage during Act I.
Photo by Lesley DwyerStudents at the Woodland Fine Arts Academy are reaping the rewards of a year’s hard work in rounds of applause.
The theater program’s production of "The Lion King Jr." hit the stage for its first performance May 2.
However, not all the key players were on stage.
Costume designers Carys Di Silvestro, 9, and Gia Thress, 10, were seated in the front row with Di Silvestro’s mom Danielle, who helped as needed.
“All the flaws we see, you can’t see from (the audience),” Danielle Di Silvestro said. “The costumes are amazing.”
Carys Di Silvestro made Mufasa’s costume. The actor portraying the lion, Parley Hansen, wore a paper mache headpiece adorned with feathers and a faux mane.
The May 2 show was performed by the high school cast. There’s also a middle school cast of the production that performed the following day.
The academy accepts students starting in Pre-K.
“Most of our dancers and theater cast that are here at this level have been here probably close to seven or eight years,” Hospitality Coordinator Mindie Camus said.
The students start each year knowing what play will be performed, so that play guides the focus throughout the rest of the year.
The actors start learning their parts right away, but the hands-on building and creating behind the scenes doesn’t kick into gear until January because the students need to be taught how to create props and costumes first.
“To see what they’ve achieved in just half a year, it’s incredible,” Camus said. “From top to bottom, it’s just great to watch.”
