By CALISTA MOTISHER
Horizon Youth Theatre
Hi, my name is Calista Motisher and I’m a member of Horizon Youth Theatre (HYT), a non-profit community theater organization that strives to create educational opportunities for students in Northwest Ohio who are interested in all aspects of theater, and I led a musical showcase for the residents at Heritage Corner Health Care Campus, in Bowling Green this weekend.
I was introduced to my love of theater in 2018 with the HYT show, “Silly Goose,” and I’ve been performing ever since! Later, in 2022, I had the opportunity to perform in my first musical with HYT. This allowed me to combine two of my passions: acting and singing. Ever since then, musical theater has become a huge part of my life, and, I believe, that it has shaped me into the person I am today.
Last year, HYT decided to form a student board to help gain insight from the eyes of participants. When I saw this opportunity, I jumped at the chance to help improve an organization that I already knew and loved!
This year, HYT tasked its student board members to propose student directed initiatives aimed at getting more students involved and reaching out to the wider Bowling Green Community. When I was tasked with coming up with an idea, it was kind of a no-brainer for me. I knew I wanted to do something that incorporated musical theater and got the community involved as well.
My grandparents live at Heritage Corner, and I’ve seen how the residents light up around music. My friends and I have gone Christmas caroling there for a couple years now and my family loves to help out at the karaoke nights. You can just see how much music means to the people there.
One resident, Rita, loves it when we sing so much that she begs us to keep going! So, I thought, what better way to bring the two together? Seeing the joy that these events can bring to the residents, and knowing how important it is to connect with those who are living in facilities and can’t get out as often, I just knew this would be a good fit – for both the students and the residents.
Students performing in this weekend’s show ranged in age from 10 to 17. The show started off with Greta Chung, a freshman at Bowling Green High School, performing “I Know It’s Today”from “Shrek” She and Juliet Erekson, also a BGHS student, performed a duet from “Anastasia”called, “In A Crowd Of Thousands”. Liam Rogel, a student from the Toledo School for the Arts, performed “Perspective” from “She Loves Me.” Aidan Thomas, a BGHS sophomore performed two songs, a solo from “Bright Star” called “Heartbreaker” and “In the Shallows,” which he and I performed together as a duet. The performances concluded with a fifth grader from St. Aloysius Catholic School, Carina Motisher, performing “Tomorrow”, from “Annie.”
But the best part came after that, when we led the residents in a Sing-A-Long including some of their favorite songs: “Do Re Mi” and “Edelweiss” from “The Sound of Music,” and by popular request, John Denver’s “Country Roads.” There was so much energy and happiness in the dining room as the HYT students dispersed among the crowd and sang along with the residents. Students and senior citizens alike left the event with a smile on their face and a song in their heart.
My friends and I love to perform and sing, and for many of us, Horizon Youth Theatre was what brought us into the world of performance. HYT’s leaders devote so much time and energy to helping young people grow comfortable with performing on stage.
Performing takes a lot of confidence, and that confidence carries over to our lives off stage as well. In many ways, these lessons have helped me to grow not only as a performer, but as a person. Many of us on HYT’s student board also serve in leadership roles in other organizations. We also serve as mentors to the younger students involved in HYT.
This showcase is one small example of how HYT is living their motto. Theater requires an audience, and the audience at Heritage Corner was so welcoming and grateful for our showcase. This show underscored what performing is all about — connecting with the community, sharing joy and building bridges across generations.
