Power to Believe

Whew I can't beleive rehearsals are under way! Last night we asked for the parents to come to the at the end of it. I wanted to let them understand who we were and why their kid/s is doing this. Here is what I said

Hello! you are all now officially part of sing for America’s Tarzan. welcome to all of you, especially new members of the Sing for America family. And I don’t use that word lightly. I mean it. As this process goes on you will all fully understand.

Look around you, these are the people who over the next ten weeks will sweat, cry, and bleed for you and you for them. Let me tell you why…



Our family ,the Gilberts, has a deep performance background from print, commercials, television shows and movies, to street performing with Broadway Rhythms dance company and dream come true. Taryn loved dancing from when she was two, and from then on the rest of us were roped in. With Broadway Rhythms the girls began to sing, and there we had the trifecta: singing, dancing and acting… which equals theatre! Remember that as I go on. After we moved on from truly my sisters’ greatest influence, they wanted to perform on their own wherever someone would book us. This was 2004, and by 2005 Kids for America was born. At that time, 9/11 still fresh in everyone's minds, we had alot of soldiers overseas and many of them were from right here in the Valley. That’s how we decided we would donate the money we made to the families of active serving military. The first year, as we were somewhat known around the Valley, we had about 30 shows and were able to give our inaugural donation of $1,250 to the Blue Star Mothers, who located the families who needed it. This money goes to heating bills in a cold winter, rent, food, gas, Christmas presents (my favorite) etc.

Eventually shows rose to about 80 a year. By 2008 our donations went up and soldiers came home and their families needed even more help. By 2011 we had donated $24,000 dollars.

Now, during those 6 years things really changed in our performance lives. The girls hit the “dead” years for commercial and print, and knew that when they came out of those slow teenage years, the full brunt of the morally debased industry would be staring at them. This business takes a toll on you. On the flip side, Jorne and I were getting sick of it. As there wasn’t much work anymore and gas prices were getting higher and higher, we stopped going into NYC. We were doing more and more concerts and Jorne and I were dedicating more time to sports while the girls’ interest in theatre grew and grew.

Fast forward to spring 2011. We felt stalemated once again. After 7 years of building Sing for America, it hadn't grown very much in the last two years. The girls wanted to do more, to take the next step. As it had before, the perfect storm approached. The girls had heard so often that they didn't "look the part" for this role or that role in local theatre. They worked in every theater in the Valley and beyond for many years, performing in over 40 productions and had only had the opportunity to play one leading role a piece, each of which were originally cast as an African American woman. They said… enough! Jorne, Daddy and I came home after a spring football practice and Mommy and my three sisters were sitting around the table. They told us we are putting on a musical, “Cinderella.” I was like what? What are you talking about? Boy did I find out! At this time I was going into my sophomore year and only cared about football… but that changed.

During Cinderella I watched as 60 people came together and produced something magical. It would of cost close to 40,000 dollars to put on that show, but with our set donated by Central Catholic, all wood donated by Home Depot, fabric for costumes donated by Nick Of Time Fabrics, venue discounted, lights and sound donated by DJ Seibert, programs, tickets, billboards, posters, t-shirts, tools, paint donated by people and businesses of the Valley. But all of that was nothing compared to what truly made me recognize something special: a cast that supported one another. From the dancer we had who went on to dance behind Madonna and the West Chester and Desales theatre majors, to our 15 first time theater people; they all came together as one and supported that show. Sometimes they would be in there until 12am just helping with whatever needed to be done. Not because we asked but because they wanted to. They came early, sold tickets, worked on everything they could because they believed in something. For many of these actors this was the first time they had any experience of being part of something and having people count on you and you being able to count on them. The feeling of unity changes how you look at things and your ability to work hard for something.

See, I had a very negative opinion of theatre growing up. I saw alot of selfishness, wasted time, immorality, unhealthy environments, and unwelcoming people who couldn’t leave old ways of thinking. But this was none of that.

Last summer’s show was “Shrek the Musical,” and it would have cost 60,000 dollars to produce. But our cast and the community put that show on so we could raise money for those who kept and keep us free. Now we are doing “Tarzan” and cost is comparable. Our family, especially my dad, Jorne and I, have a rich background in athletics. We have played almost every sport you can think of besides ice hockey. I was always part of a team and know the benefits of that. A team is a microcosm of life. It is a bunch of people who may be nothing like you who you must work with in order to accomplish one goal. We learn how to overcome any odds, learn compassion , deal with adversity, determination, ingenuity, selflessness, self-worth, appreciation, discipline, pride and respect. I found out theatre can teach these things too IF we become not a group of misfits, or even a cast, but a team. Teammates don’t want to let one another down. They go their hardest every single day because if they fall behind it hurts the team. Teammates don’t do only what’s required, they do everything they can. It’s not an obligation but an opportunity.

“Tarzan” will be a team. We need every one of you to commit. We will need you! To parents: Your kids are in a great place when they are here. Know our #1 priority is the growth of each of them as human beings, but we will need you too. Whether it is working out rides, asking if your child practiced their routines, signing up to help backstage or in the lobby during show time, etc. There are only 7 of us, we can’t do this alone, and I know we won’t have to. We have had such great parent support in the past and I know we will have it again. We will never ask you for money for your kid to participate but we do ask for you to exploit your resources when your kid asks for support. Can you sew? Can you sell tickets at work? Can you hang a poster up? Do you or family members build or play instruments? Do you know musicians? Do you know simply great places to buy fabric? Whatever you can offer…

The goal is to donate $5,000 to the Blue Star Mothers on closing day. That means we need to sell 2,400 tickets in advance for the show. Our average is 1,500 so we will work on our end for another 400 tickets sold and on your end we will ask for you all to work to sell another 500. Not because we asked you to or you feel obliged, but because you want to, because you believe in what we are doing here: coming together as one to give back to our community, to the soldiers who make this possible, to grow as people working in a selfless way to accomplish something incredible.