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SUMMER CAMP FOR GRADES 3-9

Mu Explorations is coming back this summer with eight half-day, week-long camps for elementary and middle school students! Pick and choose from different camp topics—and if you sign up for both morning and afternoon camp, you’ll have a full day of theater.

Each camp is led by professional theater artists, and through activities and physical games, students will dive into performance strategies and stage skills, learn about the Asian American experience, and have fun along the way!

Camp Cost: Each camp is $250, with an option to Pay As You Are. Example: If you sign up your camper for both the morning and afternoon camp during Session 1, the market value is $500. However, if you need to pay less, you are able to.

Camp Location: 825 Arts, 825 University Ave. W, Saint Paul

How Camp Works: Camps are divided by elementary school (grades 3-5) and middle school (grades 6-9). Each camp will be unique, so if a student signs up for every camp possible, they will not repeat the same curriculum.

  • Morning camps are 9 am-noon.

  • Afternoon camps are 1-4 pm.

  • If a student signs up for both morning and afternoon in the same session, the day includes a supervised lunch with a Mu staff member.

Session 1 (July 21-25)


  • Detective Momu has a mystery to solve, and the only person who can help is… you! This camp puts you in the writer’s chair, unfolding the mystery day by day as Momu follows a trail of clues leading all around the Twin Cities. In the meantime, you’ll discover inspiration in your own neighborhood, connect to history, and weave it together into an original story with your classmates. At the end of the week, we’ll present this puzzling case to friends and family, and see if they can find the answer!

  • Go on impossible journeys and explore magical lands inspired by Asian American folktales and children's stories. You will take part in theater games, create original scripts, and express yourself creatively through masks, costumes, music, and art. Just as importantly, you'll learn about the origins of these folktales and why they’re still relevant. At the end of the week, you’ll perform your version of these stories for your friends and family!

  • Are you ready to learn the secrets of playwriting? We’ll dig into the basics of storyboarding, genre, conflict, resolution, and how to build engaging scenes and dialogue. As a playwright, you’ll also blend your imagination with your own experiences to create rich stories. By the end of the week, we’ll write a play together with your class and present it in a mini showcase for friends and family. Get ready to bring your audience to laughter, tears, and applause!

  • In Musical Theater, it’s time to let your star shine! Through exercises and games, you’ll not only build confidence and improve your singing and dancing, but you'll also learn how to tell a story through your performance. We'll also spend some time diving into Asian American representation in musical theater history—Lea Salonga or Philippa Soo, anyone? To cap it off, we'll end the week with a group performance for friends and family to enjoy! 

 

Session 2: July 28-Aug 1


  • How do we create the universe where our stories can come alive? Experience the magic of worldbuilding, and let your tale unfold into a spectacular adventure complete with characters, side quests, and legendary relics. Working with your classmates, you will become the designers of an immersive campaign that pays homage to Asian mythology and fairytale creatures. In the process you'll develop skills related to acting, playwriting, movement, improv, and more.

  • Do you love singing in the car or dancing down the street? Then get ready to take center stage with Mu's Musical Theater Camp. We’ll celebrate Asian American artists in musical theater, learn foundational skills, and explore storytelling through song and dance. You’ll finish the week in a dazzling performance for friends and family to enjoy!

  • Improve your acting skills across a week of theater games, technique lessons, and group activities as you build up your actor's toolkit. Every day, we'll work on pushing our creativity to fully express ourselves through our voices, bodies, senses, and imagination as solo performers and ensemble members. At the end of the week, you’ll be ready to perform full scenes in a showcase for your friends and families!

  • Learn how to wow the crowd! This physical theater class will cover the basics in circus, stage combat, and dance with an emphasis on safety, consent, and communication. We’ll practice strength, balance, and flexibility, build body and spatial awareness, discuss etiquette and vocabulary, and work with partners to create basic sequences with big impact. We’ll also see how these skills lend themselves to theatrical storytelling, and showcase our achievements at the end of the week.

Mu was born out of a need for AAPI representation in American theater, and we represent the Asian American diaspora, honoring our identity as Asian Americans while also respecting our diverse backgrounds and experiences. Our past participants have specifically pointed out the joy of sharing theater with other AAPI budding artists, and for this reason, we will prioritize students who identify as Asian or Asian American for enrollment.

If additional financial support is needed, please let us know.

Should you have any questions about this or about Mu Explorations in general, please contact Morgen Chang, programs manager, at morgen@theatermu.org or (651) 789-1012.

 

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