A Broadway veteran and Monmouth County native is training local kids and adults to follow in her footsteps on stage. Saturday (April 22) marks the launch of Red Bank Performance Prep, and education division of the long-time downtown Red Bank events and entertainment company, Flipping Fun.
Theresa Fowler Pittius was an original cast member of Cameron Mackintosh's highly acclaimed, International Broadway Touring Production of Oliver. She's been involved with many other Broadway projects and is now giving back to the community that helped make her dreams come true.
“On Saturday at 11 o’clock, we’ll be opening our doors to all local young performers, and older performers, all ages to come sample all of our summer intensive programs, to do a consultation for private voice and private acting. They’ll get to sample our audition prep, improv program, our monologue boot camp, our Broadway boot camp and our music theory and basic piano. Broadway is at the point we’re accepting new talent and we’re becoming very diverse, and it’s a beautiful thing. We’re definitely growing as an industry in where as we don’t need those big names anymore, we’re going back to how it was when I was in high school which prompted me to want to be on Broadway where the raw talent is so important and that raw talent is finally getting back into the scene and finally getting the spotlight that it deserves which is very exciting thing for the Broadway community."
Theresa Fowler Pittius has been working with schools and performance programs for many years. Ava Giglia is a 12-year old from Middletown, New Jersey. She's one of Theresa's top students....
“She’s amazing! She teaches me everything. If I have an audition, I come right to her always."
When asked Ava had no problem singing on the songs from Oliver.
(Sings) "As long as life is long, I'll love him right or wrong and somehow I'll be strong, as long as he needs me"
One of the youngest students at Red Bank Performance Prep is 7-year old Marin Stefanelli of Monmouth Beach....
(Acting) "Well why you telling me? And that’s my new philosophy! Why you telling me? My new philosophy! Yeah!”
Pittius isn't doing this all alone, she's joined by off-Broadway director, actor and playwright Thomas Ryan Ward and actress, vocal and piano teacher Jessi Clayton.
"I personally work with everyone from people who sing at the Stone Pony to people who go into New York for Broadway auditions, to recording artists."
You can find out more about the program and levels of instruction at www.redbankprep.com.
The entire interview with Theresa Pittius, Ava Giglia and Marin Stefanelli will be available soon.
