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Kids Take Center Stage

Sometimes, in front of a live audience, even experienced actors make mistakes. Sometimes they forget their lines. Sometimes they trip and fall onstage. Sometimes they burp.

They burp? Oh, sure. Just ask Cassidy Ladden, 11, one of the stars of a new show called The Broadway Kids Sing Broadway.

"I was in the middle of singing a verse, and I just burped. My microphone was on, so everyone heard it," Cassidy says. "It was really embarrassing!" Still, after a while, "I learned to laugh about it," she says.

Cassidy is one of 20 Broadway Kids, ages 8 to 16, who sing and dance in the show. All have appeared in big-time stage productions before. Their show opened in New York City this month, and will tour other cities later in the year. The Kids also have released three albums.

The show features songs and dances from classic Broadway musicals, such as Annie and The Sound of Music. Some of the dancing is pretty tricky. In one dance, Kai (Kye) Braithwaite, 12, performs splits high in the air. Says Kai: "After the show, lots of kids come up to me and ask for my autograph. They're like, 'Wow! How'd you do those splits?' I tell them it takes practice!"

Eden Riegel, 16, has been practicing since she got her first Broadway part at age 7. Now she's an assistant stage manager of Broadway Kids. What's her advice to kids who want to be in the spotlight? "Never give up," she says. "Whether you're on Broadway or in a school play, being onstage is just the most incredible feeling."

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