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5 QUESTIONS & ANSWERS - Youth Theater

Kelly McIntyre, who does theater projects with youths, works on her wardrobe for an upcoming show at her home Thursday in Zelienople. On Saturday, McIntyre and 13 of her former students will perform “Twisted Family Fairytales” at a haunted bonfire at Alameda Park.

Butler County is filled with a variety of people doing interesting things. This weekly feature offers snapshots of some of them by asking them five questions. The latest installment appears below.

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When she is not working on her dual certification in special education and elementary education, Kelly McIntyre often can be found doing theater projects with youths.

For five years, the 45-year-old Zelienople woman has taught enrichment courses at Butler County Community College, where she teaches ages 10 to 17 theater in various forms.

This weekend, McIntyre and 13 of her former students will narrate and perform “Twisted Family Fairytales” at a haunted bonfire Saturday at Alameda Park. The bonfire begins at 6:30 p.m.

Here, she tells more about this and other projects:

QUESTION: What motivated you to perform at the haunted bonfire?ANSWER: My son is on the autism spectrum, and this thing we're doing is to raise money for Exceptional Adventures, which (plans outings for) kids that have special needs.I have a heart for the special needs community. I wanted to do something that would be a vehicle that would reach out to that community and give kids the experience of being part of community service.

QUESTION: What kinds of theater events do you coordinate?ANSWER: I write these shows in an ensemble concept so these kids can have equal time onstage. I want the kids to really have the whole experience of theater and have a safe place to enjoy it and be nurtured by it.They're basically tailored for kids so they would have an even amount of lines.

QUESTION: Does your group have a name, and how often does it perform?ANSWER: This group we're calling The Improvables. We actually have a couple things scheduled for this coming summer already outside the program at BC3. I did one two years ago, one four year ago, this is the third one: I would say right now one every two years, but it's growing. People are calling me.

QUESTION: What can people expect on Saturday?ANSWER: What we're doing is an interactive storybook. Instead of me just telling stories and putting on hats, the whole cast is going to. We'll be there from 12 to 4 during the day, doing the show over and over to promote the event that night. We're also going to be in costume walking around the park trying to get people interested in what we're doing.

QUESTION: What age group are you targeting?ANSWER: It's really for all ages. I write like “Shrek,” things that kids can get and adults can get. They're real problems that families have but they're twisted into fairy tales.The little kids love it, because they just love the pageantry and the costumes. This is very simple because it's an interactive storybook. The kids are going to interact with the audience. It's written into the script.

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