It’s 5 p.m. on a recent Friday and actors inside Casa 0101 Theater in Boyle Heights greet each as they go back and forth between crowded dressing rooms and empty theater seats.
An ogre slathered in green paint chases after Peter Pan while Pinocchio slips into costume. Backstage, assistants are gluing rhinestones, pinning down tiaras and adjusting wigs.
“Does anyone need help with putting on their mic?” a theater director can be heard yelling out, as the sea of actors transform into the characters of Duloc, the fairytale world in the animated film, “Shrek.”
While chaotic, it’s a routine these actors are used to. They’ve been preparing for the musical production of “Shrek The Musical Jr.” for months, just like professional actors. But underneath the layers of green makeup and carefully-crafted wigs are kids as young as six.
“We all worked so hard. We’re doing something that we really love and the fact that people like it and they’re coming to see us, it’s really great,” says thirteen-year-old actress Katherine Moreno, who plays Mama Ogre among other roles.
For many kids, summer is a time to play outside, go to summer camp, or spend hours on screens and video games. But for these theater kids, it means preparing for what could be the biggest stage production of their lives yet. The show, which opened in July, runs weekends through Aug. 4.
Since January, the young actors have been attending intermediate and advanced-level acting and singing classes weekly. They spend long hours at rehearsals, which can be difficult considering their experience levels vary and their ages range from 6 to 18.
“We have people who are just starting off and then we have others who have done a few more productions. It was finding the balance in what was helpful for both of them,” says the show’s director, Jocelyn Sanchez, who also serves as an acting and dance instructor at Casa 0101.
More than performing arts skills, the experience offers local kids the opportunity to gain confidence on and off stage.
Moreno says she was shy at first, but now enjoys getting to hang out with her castmates and learning how to dissect her role.
“I think my favorite thing about theater is building the character. I like tweaking everything about a character, like who they are and what they would do in certain situations,” Moreno says.
Her brother Joaquin, 9, is also a part of the show, playing Baby Ogre and other characters. His mother, Connie Valencia, says reading scripts has helped him learn how to read.
“[Casa 0101] gives children an outlet,” says Valencia. “They’ve empowered them so much…we get to see the growth in our kids.”
Like most kids in the production, juggling school activities, music lessons and rehearsals can be difficult. But the Moreno siblings and family find a way to make it all work out.
“I think the biggest challenge is trying to accommodate their schedules. But for us, once you accept it it’s fine,” says Valencia, adding that rehearsals can take anywhere from 10 to 12 hours.
Founded in 2000, CASA 0101 has taught countless of actors, young and old, and is one of the few spaces providing theater on the Eastside.
Many of the actors that come through here have gone on to book commercials and movies, including Xolo Maridueña, who acted in Casa productions as a child. Maridueña, who hails from El Sereno, played Jaime Reyes in “Blue Beetle,” the first DC Comics movie to feature a Latino superhero, and currently stars in the sixth season of “Cobra Kai.”
While many of the student actors come from the local community, the theater also attracts students and audiences from outside Los Angeles County.
Acolmixtli J.T. Ortega, 14, lives in Huntington Beach, but has been a part of the Casa 0101 family since 2018. The young actor once played baby ogre in another Shrek Jr. production. Now he gets to take the stage as the main character, Shrek, in this local showcase.
Having participated in productions before, Ortega reflects on how his castmates have the opportunity to shine, whether it’s the first time or not.
“It’s good for people that want to start something new, maybe a hobby, or something that might be their future,” he says.
Moreno, the Mama Ogre, is working to expose more young people to the theater experience she’s gained at Casa 0101.
The eighth grader helps run a theater club at Hollenbeck Middle School, which she launched with the help of the school librarian, a teacher, and her mom. There, her classmates meet weekly and learn scripts to perform at the end of each semester.
“I feel like there’s not a lot of people that know about musical theater which is very sad and it can get expensive,” Moreno said. “It helps with anxiety. It can help you make friends… It opens our minds.”
“Shrek the Musical Jr.” runs at Casa 0101 Theater Friday through Sunday until Aug.4. For showtimes and more information about Casa 0101, check here.
