Every second of Denton Theatre School is packed for the 60 children who spin an all-ages sweet treat this weekend with Willy Wonka Jr.

“We only have three weeks to put a whole show together,” said director Michael Thompson, who’s moving from the Crownover Middle School theater program to Ryan High School’s theater program this fall. “We can’t waste any time. None at all.”

DRC/Gary Payne

After three weeks of rehearsal, students in the Denton Theater School will present Willy Wonka Jr., an abridged version of the stage musical.

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Denton Theatre School is Denton Community Theatre’s outreach to area children and teams. The nonprofit group supplements the average public school theater program with intensive work in acting, singing, dancing and backstage crew work. Each summer, the theater school stages a play or musical with all the bells and whistles.

But the frenetic schedule for the summer campers, who spend six hours a day in rehearsal or in small-group sessions devoted to voice, dance, character development and other skills, is couched in serious fun. Thompson — and a corps of volunteers — say the young performers learn faster and retain more when they’re having fun.

Mildred Peveto, program director, said enrollment doubled this summer.

“It’s been great,” she said. “We don’t know if it’s word of mouth or what, but we’ve got a lot of kids this summer, and every single one of them is in the show.”

Willy Wonka Jr. is an abridged version of the stage musical based on the novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. It’s the story of a young boy who, along with a handful of other children from around the world, wins a rare chance to see the inside of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, with the eccentric Wonka as the tour guide. The beauty of the musical lies in its ability to enchant children with singable music, bright colors and inventive scenes while aiming a cautionary note to more mature viewers about the perils of an unchecked appetite, unchallenged passivity and taking things at face value. 

Thompson said the campers spent their first day getting to know each other, the second studying the audition process and then auditioning, and the third getting assigned parts. On the fourth day, the campers zoomed into their first rehearsal.

The camp is a rotating series of work groups. Thompson led rehearsals on the Campus Theatre stage. Music director David Rowland, the music teacher at McNair Elementary School, led intense music rehearsals, and choreographer Roxy Muncy led dance practice. Volun­teers led small groups through games and exercises to teach specific skills.

Mallory Bryant-Gawne, a Texas Woman’s University theater major, led a game that teaches campers to stay in character. “Honey, I Love You” requires the player who is “it” to approach another camper and delivers an over-the-top declaration: “Honey, I love you.” The test is for the camper to stay grim and reply: “Honey, I love you too, but I’m sorry, I just can’t smile.” One boy delivered the line as if he were part chimpanzee, a strategy that made the whole group crack up.

“This game teaches a bunch of things: improvisation, concentration, characterization and staying in character,” Bryant-Gawne said.

In “The Assassin Game,” a camper slinks around the room, stealing a wink at the other campers.

“The idea is to die dramatically as possible,” Bryant-Gawne said. Usually, the campers can’t figure out who the assassin is. The fun, though, is in the death. One girl in a high ponytail clutched her collar, choking out: “Oh no! Who’s going to feed my dog?” She then stiffened and did a pratfall. A boy affected a gagging fit, and fell into a dead-bug sort of position, arms and legs stiff in the air.

Thompson said the students learn one of the most important ingredients in theater.

“I can tell you in one word: teamwork. All the way through. Everyone has to be on top of everything. Everyone has to be on top of their cues,” Thompson said. “What we teach them is that if one person, whether it’s a tech person or a performer, if one person messes up, it can mess a whole group of people up.”

Thompson said the campers are acting the parts of people, but they are also performing as part of the set. Young performers will turn into the creepy boat that takes the main characters through a spooky part of the factory.

Muncy said dance comes into the parts of the show in which actors become inanimate objects. Dance captains Kaycie Carpenter, Ryleigh Thomp­­son, and Angie and Mandy Muncy lead the choreography.

“Fifty percent of the movement I’m doing in the numbers, but the other 50 percent is creative movement and improvisation,” Roxy Muncy said. “They’re learning about the musical and they’re learning about themselves. They can do everything. They just have to use their imagination. It’s all up here,” she said, pointing toward her head.

Rowland said he’s spending his time fine-tuning voices and music.

“We’re working on intonation, projection — that’s a big one, getting kids to project their voices. We’re also working on characterization — how to make your voice sound like your character looks,” he said. “We’re sticking to three-part harmony, because of time constraints. I don’t expect them to read music in three weeks, but I can teach them to match pitch and find notes.”

The cast and crew is also learning the real meaning of theater’s most famous axiom: The show must go on. During a scene rehearsal, the plug for the iPod piping the music into the theater was yanked out by accident. The players’ voices faded and the movement stopped.

“If that happened during a performance, what would you do?” Thompson asked from the seats.

“Keep singing!” said Jarred Ahlstrom, who plays the leading role of Charlie. Ahlstrom danced a short jig and grinned at the director.

“Keep singing,” Thompson said.

What: a musical for all ages, presented by the Denton Theatre School

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday

Where: The Campus Theatre, 214 W. Hickory St.

Details: Tickets are $10 at the door. For more information, call 940-382-1915.