JOHNSON COUNTY, Kan. — Theatre in the Park at Shawnee Mission Park wraps its latest show, "Half Time: Gotta Dance", this weekend.
The musical is based off of a true story of 10 dreamers who audition to dance at halftime for an NBA basketball team.
In the musical, it states these dreamers have three things in common: they love to dance, they have something to prove, and they are all over 50 years old.
The cast varies in age, race, weight and height to mirror those of the Kansas City community.
Two cast members, Darcie Hingula and Elaine Watson, are recent high school graduates.
Hingula, who said she's been performing since she was a toddler, said this cast has been a family for her.
"I know it's kind of cliche to say, but we've created a family and it's like no other family, or no other cast family, that I've had," Hingula said.
Watson, who's been performing since middle school, said the arts have been her saving grace.
"My home away from home that saved me was music and theater," Watson said.
Watson said for this musical, viewers can expect the unexpected.
"You will laugh, you will cry , you will sob," Watson said. "But you will stand up and hoot and holler as loud you can be because it's like feeling at home."
After not being able to perform in front of an audience for more than a year, Hingula said it took a toll on her mental health and she's so glad to be back on stage.
"It definitely sucked when all that happened, but then when we got the chance to finally all come back after literally over a year, I was so excited and just relieved to be back," Hingula said. "I had missed so much theater."
Watson said it's been exciting seeing so much passion on one stage.
"For some of us it's only been like five years since we fell in love and for some people it's been 50 years since they fell in love," Watson said. "And that passion is still so strong and that fire is so vibrant in everybody. And you can see the passion and you can see the heart."
Both Watson and Hingula are also finalists in KC Superstar, a singing competition in Kansas City.
This year marks the 12th year for the fundraising event. The final competition will be Aug. 22.
