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July at the Firehouse Arts Center is going to the kids.
Adults are welcome in the audience too, of course, but the stage will belong to the youth.
A busy month of showcasing young Tri-Valley talent at the city-operated theater in downtown Pleasanton begins with the annual “Tri-Valley High: The Series” presented by local teen improv troupe Creatures of Impulse.
Each Wednesday night from July 3 until July 24, the acclaimed group will demonstrate their off-the-cuff skills with a brand-new installment of their running improvised series — “much like a TV show,” Firehouse officials said. Unlike the brief skit- or game-style improv made popular by “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” among other groups, Creatures of Impulse specialize in long-form improvisational storytelling.
“‘Tri-Valley High’ is a super fun, completely improvised play which this year is set at a sleep-away camp! Each week, our story will build on itself and you can see the characters grow over the course of four different years at a sleep-away camp inspired by your suggestions,” the group’s director, Lou Cooper, said in a Firehouse press release Tuesday.
Two days after the first Creatures show, the High School Music Collaborative’s summer cabaret “Follow Your Dream” on July 5.
“In the world of musical theatre, artists of every age spend their time playing their favorite roles from their favorite shows, time and time again in their kitchens, cars, bathrooms — you name it — in the hopes that one day a company will do that show, cast them and give them the chance to share that love on stage,” director Andrew Mondello said.
“‘Follow Your Dream’ gives the incredible High School Cabaret cast the chance to live out that dream for a moment — and sing the songs that inspire them to create art. It is a show that is truly, in every way, from the heart,” he added.
Next up will be the two-day run of Pleasanton Youth Theater Company’s “Magic Treehouse: Dinosaurs Before Dark KIDS” production.
The play, which Firehouse reps describe as a “family-friendly musical (that) follows the adventures of a brother and sister who discover a magical treehouse that whisks them away to the land of dinosaurs,” has matinee and evening performances on July 12 and 13.
Audiences will be transported (by roller skates, maybe?) into a Greek tragedy 1980-style with the pop-rock musical comedy “Xanadu JR” on July 19 and 20. “Irreverent, joyous and camp in all the ways you want a musical to be, ‘Xanadu Jr.’ is a trip to the ’80s that the whole family will enjoy,” director Mathew Glynn said.
Those same days, students in the city’s “Teen Playwrights and Theater Arts Intensives” summer camp will present their own original musical created from the ground up in just four weeks.
“This program has grown so much over the past decade. It has grown from a one-act to a full play, to a jukebox musical and now all the songs are completely original, written by the staff and participants,” said Jeff Zavattero, city library and recreation coordinator. “Each show is wonderful, unique and a direct reflection of the participants who write it. Their stories are being told onstage, and I am very proud of the work that they do.”
And closing out the youth bill (on the Amador Theater stage) will be PYTC’s production of “Disney’s High School Musical” — to the tune of four shows in three days, July 25-27.
“Experience the exhilarating fusion of talent, energy and passion as our cast brings ‘High School Musical’ to life on stage, delivering a sensational performance that will captivate hearts and transport audiences to the halls of East High,” director Laura Lentz said.
Now there will be attractions highlighting artistic adults at the Firehouse this summer too.
The Harrington Gallery continues its “Colors of Summer” exhibition, featuring nearly 100 works by talented members of Santa Clara County-based Allied Artists West, through July 27. The gallery is open Wednesdays through Saturdays.
Also, in the venue’s lobby, a special solo exhibition “Visible” by Joseph Abbati explores “the diversity and beauty of queer representation to celebrate Pride 2024” through a series of portraits, according to Firehouse officials. The two-month-old showing is on display until next Saturday.
And on the August calendar so far inside the theater: the 10th annual Desi Comedy Fest (dubbed “North America’s biggest South Asian comedy festival”) on Aug. 3, BlissFest on Aug. 16 (billed as showcasing “science-based shortcuts to serenity”) and the return of The Golden Follies on Aug. 24.
To learn more about the summer schedule, visit firehousearts.org.
Editor’s note: Jeremy Walsh is the editorial director for the Embarcadero Media Foundation’s East Bay Division. His “What a Week” column is a recurring feature in the Pleasanton Weekly, Livermore Vine and DanvilleSanRamon.com.