based on 2 reviews
Hope Musical Theater
Sarah Hope
Palo Alto, CA
(650) 568-3332
sarah@hopemusicaltheater.com
http://www.hopemusicaltheater.com
By: Your Neighbor
Date: October, 2008
Our playgroup of seven- and eight-year-olds loves acting and theater, and looked forward to this camp for months!
Unfortunately, it was not a pleasant experience for them.
Yes, the singing and dancing was adorable, and the kids made charming costumes and scenery in only two weeks, but it was all under duress. The longest two weeks of the summer!
Sarah Hope did not seem to have the right temperament for working with young people. An impatient perfectionist, her manner was curt and angry, and her tone was severe. Not a nice way to introduce theater (or anything else!) to children.
When Sarah Hope was not ignoring the little ones (virtually everyone under 10) she was ordering them around in a cold, annoyed tone that was dreadful to hear.
Every child in our group was scared of her, and the remarks Sarah Hope made to certain older children—embarrassing them in front of the whole class!!—were so shockingly unacceptable, that parents spoke with her and her assistant after class. A few times.
You could tell that Sarah Hope had nothing but disdain for the parents——not being the accomplished thespians that she considers herself——and so our valid complaints fell on deaf ears.
Hope and her assistant didn't seem to have any genuine, warm rapport whatsoever with the children, and seemed more intent on creating a "perfect" show than giving the little ones an enjoyable introduction to the stage.
Thank Goodness for the adolescent camp counselors, who were somehow untainted by Hope's icy despotism, and managed to be cheery and kind to the children. Applause and accolades should go to them!
I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS CAMP AT ALL, and really feel for the children who may sign up for this, expecting the fun adventure promised on the website, and instead winding up with a truly awful experience that rattles their self-esteem.
Too bad, because the formula and logistics of this camp are wonderful, but the wrong personality-type is at the helm.
Sarah Hope would do well to take a truthful look at how she comes off to children and their parents, and do some work on herself before advertising for her next season.
Other theater camps in the area, notably Theatreworks, Peninsula Youth Theater, and Bay Area Shakespeare are all EXCELLENT, with directors and counselors not needing anger management counseling.
Those are the camps deserving of your children's participation and your patronage.
