BonnerSprings.com

For 15 years, youths of Bonner Springs and surrounding areas have tried to dazzle people with their talent during the Tiblow Days celebrations.

This year was no different as 52 youths from Bonner Springs, Edwardsville, De Soto, Basehor, Kansas City and Platte City took to the stage for the annual Bonner Springs Library Children's Performing Arts Program.

"I think they did a really good job and had a really good time," said Susan Leininger, director of the program. "The kids always do their best."

This year consisted of five songs from the musical "Hairspray" by children ages 10-16, and five songs from "Mary Poppins" from kids between the ages of 4 and 9 years old.

Leininger started the program 15 years ago with the "Fairy Tale Theater," as an interactive story time for the Bonner Springs Library. The program was a hit and evolved over the years into a musical review involving costumes, set design and dancing. The first show had 10 participants, with casts growing to as large as 80 children in one year.

The Bonner Springs Library sponsors the program with all the funding coming from the Friends of the Library book sales.

This year's cast was a "fresh crop," Leininger said, as some of her older performers, who started in the younger show, have had to move on. But Leininger said that the new group has already shown a lot of talent that will continue to help the program's success grow.

Leininger, who is a 1981 graduate of Bonner Springs High School, was always active in theater growing up and continued that passion into her theater/voice major at Kansas University. She said that performing arts gives youths the opportunity to build their character and become more comfortable with themselves.

"It enhances their self-esteem tremendously," she said. "To be up in front of an audience at that age, a lot of kids don't get an opportunity to do that. They learn to believe in themselves and that they are able to do anything they set their minds to."

During the rehearsal process, which starts the first week of June and continues once a week until Tiblow Days weekend, Leininger said she hoped to encourage a life-long love of the arts, and if not a passion for participating, then at least an appreciation for watching.

"I think it's just really fun," she said. "The kids are upbeat, they had a great time and that's really the bottom line that they enjoy their experience."

Leininger admitted that over the past 15 years she's thought about quitting and stepping aside as director. But then each year rolls around again and she thinks of the children and what it means to them and she just can't bring herself to stop. She said that she's always dreamed of opening a children's theater in Bonner Springs.

"This is kind of that dream in the smaller stages," she said. "Maybe someday it'll expand into that."

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