The Capital Playhouse in Olympia offers a variety of summer programs focused on the arts, including the Kids At Play (KAP) series, which will put on five performances this year. The first performance will be "Willy Wonka," based on the popular book "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" by Roald Dahl, and will take place in early July.

Ann King, education director, created the Page to Stage Theater-Literacy program 13 years ago when she started working at Capital Playhouse. Her goal was to bring the written word to life on stage for students and families as well as spark their imaginations - all at no cost to them. The two Page to Stage performances are run independently of other Playhouse performances and are funded through grants and an annual fund-raiser.

Since its inception, the program has doubled the number of youth served annually, and by the end of this summer, close to 7,000 area students between the ages of 5 and 18 will have participated in the program. In the last decade, those numbers have included many kids from Joint Base Lewis-McChord since King worked hard to welcome them.

"We have forged a bond with the base," said King. "Our choir has sung on base, and we continue to reach out to them every chance we get."

One of the leading ladies is even a military dependent. Christina Oshiki, whose father is Lt. Col. Michael Oshiki with the 1st Special Forces Group, will be taking the stage to perform with KAP all summer and will kick things off in "Willy Wonka."

There will be two performances that are open to the military through Page to Stage: Thursday, July 8, at 10:30 a.m. and Friday, July 9, at 10 a.m. While the first show will have kids on hand from the JBLM North Youth Center, JBLM Main Cascade Youth Center and the JBLM McChord Field Youth Center, the show on Friday still has available seats. To try and get complimentary military only tickets to the July 9 show, contact King at (360) 943-2744 extension 14 or ann@capitalplayhouse.com. Seats will be given on a first come, first serve basis. All performances are held at South Puget Sound Community College, KJM Center for the Arts.

Those wishing to see the "Willy Wonka" production during its normal four-day run can purchase tickets through https://tickets.washingtoncenter.org/Online/. Show times are nightly Thursday, July 8, through Sunday, July 11, at 7:30 p.m. There also will be a matinee performance on Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $19 for adults and $14 for youth and seniors.

For more information, visit www.capitalplayhouse.com.