Children love to play and be silly. This summer they got to do so in a creative and constructive way, on stage. At the Richmond Community Theater’s children’s summer camp, the children put on the play “Stone in the Road” which they ran by themselves. They acted in roles, coordinated the lights, played the sounds and music, ushered in the audience, and formally welcomed them to the show in the curtain speech they had prepared.

Director Mark Colbenson shows the children how everything works, and how best to coordinate all the aspects of theater production. He allows them the creative freedom he recognizes the children have and need.

“We just want to teach them that it’s OK to get up in front of people and be goofy and silly. We want to teach them that people are laughing with them and not at them. We want them to see that theater is fun,” he said Monday.

The Richmond Community Theater’s children’s summer camp presented two shows of “Stone in the Road” on Saturday. Each show lasted half an hour, showcasing the talents of 19 children in each show. There were 27 children in the entire camp.

Colbenson was pleased with the strong turnout, as well as the good weather for the reception held in Harrington Square after the show.

“It was everything it should have been for the kids,” says Colbenson. He enjoyed seeing children return from last year’s children’s theater camp, and knows many will come back next year.

Many children that wanted to join the camp this year were unable to when scheduling placed the show’s preparation just past the July 4 holidays.

“Many kids that would have come out were at the beach,” Colbenson said. With a cast of 27 young actors, there was no shortage and some children played their role in both shows.

Dawn Kurry can be reached at dkurry@yourdailyjournal.com or by calling 997-3111 ext. 15.