Park City kids take the stage at Missoula theater camp

Theater Buffs Alice Manning (L) and Kaia Kimball. Photo: courtesy of Manning / Kimball Families

MISSOULA, Montana — Three Park City students traveled to Montana this summer for a weeklong theater camp with Missoula Children’s Theatre, an experience they say gave them more than time onstage.

Ecker Hill Middle School students Michaela Provan, Alice Manning and Kaia Kimball attended one of the camp’s summer sessions, where they rehearsed and performed “Making the Band.” The camp stages a different production each week.

Missoula Children’s Theatre empowers young people through theater education and performance while bringing live productions to communities worldwide. The organization has toured to all 50 states and 16 countries.

The girls first learned about MCT when the organization visited Trailside Elementary School. Interested in the program, they later signed up for the Montana camp, which does not require an audition.

Manning and Kimball also share a Park City connection that goes back a generation. Their mothers, Julie and Susie, were friends and classmates in Park City when they were the same age.

Provan’s father drove the girls to camp, where their days included morning, afternoon, and evening rehearsals, along with cabin cleaning, lakefront swimming, a talent show, nature walks, and free time. Campers stayed in cabins with other students and counselors.

Cellphone use was limited, something the girls said they came to appreciate. Without constant access to their phones, they found themselves spending more time talking, rehearsing and connecting with other campers.

Manning and Kimball are also regular participants with Up With Kids, a theater program that comes to Park City.

For Manning, this summer marked her second year at MCT. She attended last year when the production was “Summer Camp” and said she enjoyed reconnecting with friends from that experience while also attending with friends from Park City and meeting new people.

Manning plans to audition for Ecker Hill’s annual school production this year, regardless of what show is selected. Her favorite musical to watch is “Hamilton.”

“The camp directors and counselors are awesome,” Manning told TownLift. “I think that theater is a really great way to have fun, express yourself, and make new connections. Even if you don’t decide to pursue it as a career, it helps you a lot in all parts of your life.”

This was Kimball’s first year at MCT camp. She also participates in youth theater programming in Park City through the Egyptian Theatre.

Her current favorite musical is “& Juliet,” which she saw on Broadway this summer during a separate trip to New York City for the Honors Performance Series. Kimball was the only participant from Park City and had to audition for the program.

Her involvement with Utah Conservatory helped lead to the opportunity. Students from around the country stayed together in a hotel, and the program culminated with the group performing as a choir at Carnegie Hall.

Kimball said she would also like to participate in the program’s high school division, which includes an opportunity to travel to Australia and visit the Sydney Opera House.

“I just love the whole idea of being able to, like, be on a stage and be able to portray all the different characters,” Kimball told TownLift. “And being with your cast, too, I really enjoy that feeling of, like, community.”

Both Manning and Kimball said they would readily recommend the Missoula Children’s Theatre camp to other students interested in performing, meeting new people, and spending a week immersed in theater.