The Players Theatre Newswww.theplayers.org
838 North Tamiami Trail • Sarasota, FL 34236 • 941.365.2494 Fax: 941.954.0282
August 6, 2014
IT’S A HARD KNOCK LIFE: PLAYERS KID KAITY CAIRO
Sarasota, FL – Big dreams and big talent are sometimes packed into small packages. 10 year old local Players Kid Kaity Cairo is one of those packages. Kaity recently participated in the NYC Annie Tour Audition, a national audition for a year-long tour across the U.S.
Over 200 children participated in the open-call auditions for the 7 star orphans. Over the course of a week, the girls were cut down to two groups of 7, one of which included Kaity. Shelley Cairo, Kaity’s mother, states “It was a very difficult, stressful and educational process. The first thing the casting agent told the group was that it was very hard work, but when it wasn’t fun anymore that’s when it is time to get out.” The girls were asked to sing bars from the show, including ‘Tomorrow’ and ‘Hard Knock Life’ as well as dance to choreography for ‘Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile.’ “The most stressful aspect was that the casting people never told anyone what was going on! At one point, they called quite a few of the kids and their families into a room. We thought it would be good news, but it was a large cut – and Kaity made it through!” says Shelley.
The winning group was selected based on the lead ‘Annie’ for that group. Unfortunately Kaity’s group did not get chosen, but she said “I did it for the fun of [the experience]”. After auditions, the director called her to say he adored her and asked if she’d be a backup or the ‘8th orphan.’ Kaity’s mother states,“I went into this thinking ‘It’ll be a fun experience. We’ll hit New York, it’ll be a girl’s weekend.’ And then uh-oh… But for them to bring Kaity so far was amazing.”
Despite both this experience and having been recently cast as Horton the Elephant in The Players Studio Summer Camp show: Seussical Jr, Kaity has continued to expand her knowledge and experience over the summer by participating in the Broadway Artists Alliance performing arts camp. While there, she had the chance to partake in master classes with instructors and actual Broadway performers as well as a recital in front of 20 casting agents and management companies. She has also received a callback for one of the children in The Asolo Repertory’s production of South Pacific, and will be auditioning for A Christmas Story with The Players Theatre on August 9th.
Kaity has been involved in several productions including Seussical & Seussical Jr., Annie, and White Christmas with The Players Theatre, as well as Evita at the Golden Apple and Godspell with Spotlight Kids for a Junior Theatre Festival competition. She also participates in multiple Players Studio classes and workshops with skill sets ranging from acting, singing, and dancing to even auditioning. “Her time at The Players taught her the auditioning process, and to be comfortable on stage” says Shelley.
The Players Studio will be holding an Open House August 23, 2014 from 10am to 1pm. All are invited to come, ask questions and enroll. Classes and workshops will resume August 25, 2014, and will run through May 30, 2015. Additional information about classes is available on The Players Website.
The Players Theatre
838 N. Tamiami Tr., Sarasota FL 34236, 941-365-2494, Fax: 941-954-0282
www.theplayers.org. Box Office: Mon-Sat, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., and one hour prior to curtain time. The Players Box Office is located on Tamiami Trail between 10th Street and Blvd. of the Arts.
The Players Theatre
838 N Tamiami Trail
Sarasota FL 34236
