Lolek aims to embody truth, beauty, goodness

If they found enough performers for a youth stage production of “My Son Pinocchio Jr.,” then Corinne Mayans, husband Michael, and daughters Clara and Catherine, would launch a Catholic youth theater company. If they fell short, they reasoned, they could skip the licensing, rehearsals, sets, costumes, makeup, choreography, backstage management, and countless other logistics. 

“Our family decided to put on a show if we could find 15 kids, so we started asking around,” Mayans said. “We got 50 within a few days and had to shut down enrollment. The Holy Spirit has moved so much to make this possible. That includes not only bringing in the right talent among the kids. Parents also showed up with talent and skill to help with music, choreography, and set design.”

Settling on a spiritual patron was not difficult. “We were inspired by St. Pope John Paul II, with his love for theater and youth,” she said. “Before he became a priest, he at one point thought he wanted to be an actor. He was very interested in the arts as a means of helping to share truth, beauty and goodness and to help change culture.”

Having identified their patron, the name followed naturally. “His childhood nickname was Lolek,” Mayans said. “It was an exciting way to honor his youth alongside his love for young people.”

Some loose ends remained, such as where those 50 actors would rehearse and perform. As efforts to find venues kept hitting dead ends, Mayans brought the matter to prayer one evening in the adoration chapel of her parish, St. Catherine of Siena. 

“I said, ‘Lord, if you want this to happen, please open a door for us,’” she said. “For some reason, Christ the King came to mind.”

The next day, Mayans attended Mass at Wichita’s Christ the King Parish and, afterwards, spoke with pastor Fr. Devin Burns and Mary Jo Evans, the principal of the parish school.

“They are very supportive of the arts,” Mayans said. “They saw the value of where we were trying to take Lolek and had space available. It was a really good partnership from the start.”

Since then, she said, the program has been officially incorporated into the life of parish, which includes giving back to the parish and school, such as through a service project to help with building maintenance.

“We were not only seeking a place to rehearse, we were also seeking a home,” Mayans said. “As a program under Christ the King, we sit under the umbrella of the Diocese of Wichita, allowing us to better serve the youth across the diocese.”

Meanwhile, she said, Bishop Carroll Catholic High School agreed to host the performances. “We were so grateful that Bishop Carroll allowed us to perform,” Mayans said. “We have performed in other places since, but we will be back at Bishop Carroll Auditorium for the next show.”

Since its May 2024 debut, more than 100 youth from 17 parishes throughout the Diocese of Wichita have participated in at least one of Lolek’s six shows. The fifth and six shows, a twin bill featuring “The Jungle Book Kids” and “Singin in the Rain Jr.”–  will begin at 7 p.m. on May 1-3. 

A Unique Community

Every Lolek rehearsal opens with prayer, and the exercise is no mere devotional box to check, but more of a tone-setter. An illustration of that occurred during the weekend of Lolek’s performance of “Seussical Jr.” last October, when cast member Connor Swords, a junior at BCCHS and member of Christ the King Parish, hit the figurative wall hours before the final production. Having performed earlier in the day and the night before, and after the high-intensity preparation of show-week, Swords was exhausted as he took a seat on the front of the empty stage.

“I prayed silently, ‘God, please give me the energy to get through one last show,’” he said. “Then another person joined me, followed by another, and then more, all sitting in silence. By the end, we had a group of 15-20 people sitting there and praying.”

The show that followed didn’t miss a step.

“I don’t know where the energy came from,” Swords said, “but it was probably our best performance.”

Vincent Uhlschmidt, a home-schooled sophomore whose family attends Bel Aire’s Church of the Resurrection, has had a role in four Lolek productions, and says such piety and community are cornerstones of Lolek’s culture. “Starting and ending each rehearsal in prayer connects us all,” he said. “That not only feels great, but makes the show work better.”

The sense of community endures after preparation and performance, Swords emphasizes, as does the satisfaction that comes from mutually striving to make use of the group’s collective talent.

“Every time I come away from practice, I am so filled, so happy,” he said. “It improves my life. Our community is one-of-a-kind. It’s really incredible to have a group of Catholics come together like this.”

“Lolek started small, but the Catholic community has made a really big impact on who we are,” Uhlschmidt said. “It keeps growing, and it gets better with every show.”

He also recalls moments in which the demands of the stage have prompted him to call upon the Lord’s assistance. Although prayer is part of the pre-show routine, Uhlschmidt says he often keeps appealing to heaven after the curtain has gone up. “I was the Cat in the Hat in ‘Seussical’ and was backstage praying ‘God, help me bring these people what they need,’” Uhlschmidt said. “During the overture I was at the back of the stage praying. Everything that comes along with the show can bring out your faith.”

Every show’s initial rehearsal begins in the church, often with Mass or Eucharistic adoration, but always with prayer, Mayans explains. “We always dedicate it to God before we even begin,” she said. “Throughout the process, we discuss things from the play that we do and do not want to emulate in our own lives and how we can use this platform to communicate that.”

That includes examining the motives and choices of the people being portrayed on stage. “We dive into the characters from the perspective of our faith,” Mayans said. “This show also has a devotions team. Its members lead devotions and pick some of the topics to raise for discussion, whether it is from the lives of the saints or pulled from the show. Then, during tech week, we have Mass together right before the show.”

The ability to take their faith into the theater ties cast members tightly to one another, Mayans reflected, but more importantly, can bind them more closely to the Lord. “A shared faith enables you to discuss how the characters are responding and examine what in the story is good, true, and beautiful,” she said. “Learning how to convey that challenges them and helps their faith grow.”

One other way in which the group displays its faith is through the song by which it closes each performance, Mayans adds. “I wrote it as a prayer for the cast and crew to sing together. The song begins, ‘Any light that shines on me is not for me,’” she said. “In the last weeks before our first performance, I sang that song a capella to the cast, teaching it to them. Before each new performance, all of the students who know the song sing it to the new cast members. It has become a special tradition where we pass it on and join together to sing it at each performance. Instead of seeking attention for ourselves, we aim to use our platform and our roles to shine light on that which is true, good, and beautiful, as we have learned from our Catholic faith.”

Striving for Excellence

Even if it benefits young people to put on a stage production in the midst of a thoroughly Catholic environment, the end result is no mere afterthought, Mayans emphasizes. A performance should entertain, she observes, even when staged by young people. 

“It was funny,” she said. “After our first performance, a lot of people walked away saying, ‘Wow, that was actually really good.’”

Mayans could not help but note some surprise. “From the very beginning, we set the bar very high, because I know the kids can do it,” she said. “They really want to be challenged, and we do that. We set the bar higher with each show because they build on what they learned from the last show and we want them to be the best they can be. Even as we bring in new people, they see and strive for our high standard.”

That standard is to delight the audience. “It should be something all kinds of people look forward to, not just something for parents and grandparents,” Mayans said. “Making something that is genuinely fun to watch is a real achievement.”

Swords appreciates Mayans’ approach as one that insists on excellence but is not sparing with praise. “Mrs. Mayans is incredible, she is exactly what I look for in a director, balancing strictness with compliments,” he said. “She’s like the mom of our big family here, and with all the other directors they’re an awesome team.” 

 “All our directors are absolutely amazing,” Uhlschmidt concurs. “By making the effort to create this theater company, they have changed so many lives.”  

Jose Gonzalez, a parishioner at Wichita’s St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, is directing “Jungle Book Kids,” and Kelly Belton, a parishioner of St. John’s in Clonmel is the music director for both “Jungle Book Kids” and “Singin’ in the Rain Jr.” Lillian Rau is assistant director of “Singin’ in the Rain Jr.”

“We have been blessed with multiple skilled directors from across the diocese who have taken on leadership roles for different productions, giving so much of themselves in order to teach the students and put on high quality performances,” Mayans said. 

Double Feature

“Singin in the Rain Jr.” has a cast of 32, while “Jungle Book Kids” features 38. The performance, which runs during the first three days of May, starts at 7 p.m. in the Bishop Carroll auditorium. Admission is $12. Tickets can be purchased, and more information can be found, at www.lolekwichita.com.

In “Singin’ in the Rain” Uhlschmdit plays Don Lockwood, which means acting the part of an actor. “He’s a very flightly guy,” Uhlschmidt described. “He’s funny, but sometimes shows a serious side. That fits my personality, so I feel a connection to Don Lockwood.”

Swords mainly depicts R.F. Simpson, a producer for the film company that employs Lockwood. “He’s a harder personality who wants to make sure the job gets done and that his company does well,” Swords said. “I also play the ‘Broadway Melody’ host. Toward the end I perform a musical number.”

Both actors insist the show is well worth the price of admission. 

“Come see our show, it’s really fun,” Uhlschmidt said. “With ‘Jungle Book Kids’ followed by ‘Singin’ in the Rain,’ people will be in touch with that larger community.”

“We are doing things in this show that we have not done in any of our previous ones,” Swords said. “We are challenging ourselves with tougher numbers because we have higher expectations. It will be an incredible show.”

Ultimately, Mayans reflects, Lolek’s real producer is also the producer of the universe. 

“The Holy Spirit is at work here,” she said. “Time and again, every time I worry about meeting a need or filling a gap, God always surprises me. It has gotten to the point that I am almost embarrassed to have ever worried. As soon as I take something to prayer and give it to God, he opens doors. I know St. John Paul II is behind us and that the Holy Spirit wants Lolek to exist.”