OFC Creations’ ROC Summer Theatre Experience is the largest theater summer camp program in upstate New York. The aggressive and impressive camp program will produce in just seven summer weeks, between July 8 and August 24, a total of 15 shows at three different locations, led by a team of 25 teaching artists.
OFC’s stages will include The Lyric Theatre on East Avenue, the Studio Theater at Kodak Center on West Ridge Road, and Seton School in Brighton.
The man literally behind the curtain is Eric Vaughn Johnson. He founded OFC when he was just 12, creating small shows and videos in and around Pittsford. While still college-aged, he took on the role of program director at Rochester Association of Performing Arts (RAPA).
He also has taken the reigns as a theater director for several schools, including Seton, Penfield’s Harris Hill Elementary, Webster’s Plank South Elementary, and Rochester’s World of Inquiry.
Now at age 25, he is making quite a name for himself in the theater world and in Rochester. In February Johnson was selected by News 8 Now for its “Extraordinary Person” segment, and featured his “extraordinary” story of hard work and success during TV newscasts.
With OFC’s dramatic expansion — in both program and locations in 2018 and 2019 — many parents who have worked with Johnson over the years have moved their children into programs under the OFC umbrella.
“Eric is truly amazing and brings out the best that kids have to offer,” said Wendy Rose, whose son Zach Rose has been involved with several OFC classes and productions. “He can identify strengths within each child and cultivate them to enable the student to grow in their confidence not only as an actor, but as individuals. These are skills that they can carry over into their everyday life.”
Zach first worked with Johnson at Barker Road Middle School in Pittsford — the annual musical Johnson has directed for several years — when he played Charlie Bucket in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.
“I was so impressed with his ability to pull hidden talents out of Zach, that I had never seen before,” Rose said.
Zach then performed in his first professional show, under Johnson’s direction, as Michael Banks in Mary Poppins at the Kodak Center and has continued steadily with OFC Creations ever since, even working alongside Johnson as an intern.
Johnson is joined at OFC by a seasoned and educated artistic team, with most holding degrees in music, dance, and theater. Each production is led by a director, music director, and choreographer, in addition to the technical team and backstage crew.
How it works: a parent chooses a program aligned with their child’s age and interests. Included with the summer-camp tuition, your child is guaranteed a role in the production. The cast and crew work on an actual show for two weeks, concluding with a final production — complete with costumes and sets — that family and friends can attend.
“Our students are more than just a camper or audience member,” Johnson said. “They are part of the magic that is only in the performing arts.”
Helping local kids make their own dreams come true, while also overcoming their fears, is why Johnson is so passionate about what he does.
“The most rewarding part is seeing the kids that come in on day one and won’t speak,” Johnson said. “Maybe they’re a little timid and don’t want to audition and they’re all by themselves, and by the middle of the process, or by the performance, they’ve made all these friendships and they’ve come out of their shell and they say to me, ‘Mr. Johnson I want to be the lead next time.’”
“You’re always discovering who you are in the world and how you fit into the world and these kids get to have that confidence on the stage,” he added.
Zach Rose seconds that.
“Through the years, I have found theater more as a way to free myself from the stigma of school, society, and everyday life,” he said. “Because of having this ability to temporarily cast aside my troubles, doing theater has given me an outlet for stress, a platform to express my personality, and a home for me and my friends to grow long-lasting bonds and relationships.
“Without getting the opportunities to come out of my introverted shell and lose my fears of being myself in front of others, I sincerely don’t know who I would have become in comparison to now,” Zach said. “I will be forever thankful to the theater community and the people I have worked with for teaching me invaluable lessons, such as professionalism, teamwork, extroversion, and discipline.”
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