A brand new musical premieres in New York City this December and Diya Ramesh, after months of hard work and practice, will be on the stage to watch it happen
A Voorhees seventh-grader will be making her New York City debut when she and other South Jersey singers perform in the world premiere of “The Little Dancer” this December.
Diya Ramesh is a member of the Garden State Girlchoir. She joined choir in third grade after being interested in singing at a young age, which eventually introduced her to her love of theater as well.
According to Steve Fisher, composer of the musical, auditions for the musical were open only to children in the Garden State Girlchoir and the New Jersey Boychoir this past spring, choirs he directs and is familiar with.
“He wanted to give the opportunity to the kids,” Aarthi Ramesh, Diya’s mother, said. “But she did the audition and she got picked, and at that point we were looking at the logistics, because it was a huge time commitment.”
Diya and the other singers have been practicing every Sunday for about three hours for the past three months, continuing to work on the musical pieces for the performance, but also learning dance as well, something Diya was not familiar with beforehand.
“I had never done dance before, I just liked singing better,” Diya said. “But now that I’ve gone through this, with how they expect all the movements to be so sharp and crisp, that’s kind of helped me in other things too. That helped me a lot [in other shows] and I’ve improved a lot.”
Diya’s older sister is the bigger fan of dancing. Aarthi says Diya’s sister has done plenty of dancing as “the dancer in the family” as she’s grown up, and the two sisters have been able to work together and bond through this experience as Diya learns how to dance in a professional setting.
According to Fisher, “The Little Dancer” is a holiday family musical. It tells the tale of 14-year-old Marie Van Goetham, who served as the model for Edgar Degas’ only sculpture. Diya and the other performers will get the chance to perform alongside five professional New York actors, adding to the authentic New York City experience.
“I really wanted to give a special opportunity for the kids in the choirs that love theater,” Fisher said. “It gives them certain theater experiences they won’t get anywhere else. “
Fisher and the children have been working with Broadway veterans in Philadelphia perfecting the singing and dancing required for the musical.
Although the time commitment has been large for Diya and the others, such an opportunity was impossible to pass up.
“Looking at it now, I think it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Aarthi said. “How many 12-year-olds get that chance to go to New York City like this?”
Diya travels to New York City in the coming weeks to finally see the stage she will perform on in December, something she is really looking forward to.
“It’s such a big deal to go up to an Off-broadway stage before you’re 18,” Diya said. “Because it’s such a huge accomplishment just to have even done that before you’re an adult.”
Diya will get to perform in 12 shows during six days while in New York City. Tickets can be purchased at www.thelittledancermusical.org. Additionally, bus trips will be running during December for those interested in seeing the musical.
Buses run out of Moorestown on Saturday, Dec. 15 and Sunday, Dec. 30, departing at 9 a.m. and returning home at 5 p.m. Shows on these dates are at 1 p.m. For $99, that covers the show ticket and the bus.
For more information, visit the website.
