Youth Troupe Will Perform at the Roxy

On June 1, Broadway on Tour, a youth theater troupe from Orange County, will join the ranks of Bruce Springsteen, Frank Zappa and other luminaries who have played the Roxy in West Hollywood.

After reviewing several children’s theater shows in L.A. and Orange Counties, Roxy owner Lou Adler has selected BOT’s production of the one-hour musical “Snoopy” to be the first family show to play the Roxy in more than five years. It will be presented twice each Saturday afternoon through Sept. 1.

According to BOT founder Dan Halkyard, an agreement was finalized Monday.

Two casts of 10- to 18-year-olds will alternate roles, and Halkyard will direct. The casts will comprise most of the original company that presented “Snoopy” until April 14 at the Grove Theater Center in Garden Grove, along with performers from Orange County and L.A. to be selected in closed auditions next week.

Meanwhile, Halkyard announced that because of administrative differences, the troupe will not return to the Grove Theater Center, where it has been the resident children’s company for a year. BOT will seek a new permanent home in Orange County, Halkyard said.

Best known as a venue for rock music, the Roxy actually has hosted a variety of performances through the years, including several legitimate theater productions (among them, a yearlong run by the Not Ready for Prime Time Players youth company).

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Adler, whose production credits include the Monterey Pop Festival and numerous hit records and films, has branched out into children’s entertainment in recent years, starting the Ode 2 Kids record label and producing the 1993 CHIME children’s music festival at Knott’s Berry Farm.

A father of five, ages 2 to 22, Adler said he is looking forward to bringing youth theater back to the Roxy. “Theatrically, the Roxy is the perfect setting [because of its] professional lighting and sound. In this area, you just can’t find children’s theater performing under conditions like this,” he said. “To have something like this for children every weekend is extremely valuable. The younger they can have that theatrical experience, the better.”