2 local boys to join group in Macy's parade

By DEBORA SHAULIS
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
Two local boys with the same first name have something else in common -- a chance to perform in the opening number of the 79th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Tyler Hanes, 12, of Struthers and Tyler Stouffer, 11, of Salem are two of 470 members of Camp Broadway, an award-winning theater-arts education company for children ages 9 to 13. Camp Broadway was asked to provide the parade's opening number this year.
The nationally televised parade begins at 9 a.m. Thursday on NBC stations, including WFMJ Channel 21 in Youngstown.
The two Tylers first met in a production of "The King & amp; I" by Move Over Broadway Productions, a local community theater group. Tyler Stouffer's mother, Lori, said it was coincidence that both boys auditioned for Camp Broadway this year. She learned about the program in an e-mail.
Cathy Hanes said she first heard of Camp Broadway four years ago from her sister, who read about it on the Playbill.com theatrical Web site. Her son has auditioned every year since then. This will be the third time he performs in the parade with Camp Broadway.
Numbers fluctuate
The number of children accepted by Camp Broadway fluctuates, depending on what Macy's parade organizers want from year to year, Cathy Hanes said. Last year, only 18 children were needed. This year, because Camp Broadway is in charge of the opening segment, the number rose to 470. "The opening number is the biggest production in the whole parade," she added.
The Camp Broadway kids will perform "We Give Thanks Today," a song by off-Broadway composer Andrew Lippa and lyrics by Bill Schermerhorn, creative director at Macy's.
Lori Stouffer appreciates her son's enthusiasm for performing.
"I love it, I really do," she said. "It's great for their self-esteem and socialization skills." If there's a drawback, it's the audition process. Tyler Stouffer has acted in 23 community plays since he was 6. Lori Stouffer also has taken him to Hollywood to try out for movies and TV shows.
When he's unsuccessful, it's difficult for both of them. "I think everyone should love my son, and I don't understand why they don't," she said with a chuckle.
Lori Stouffer believes her son is "extremely serious" about a career in the arts, she said.
Acting is Tyler Stouffer's preference. "I love for just a short two-hour period to be someone totally different from myself," he said.
Tyler Hanes said he, too, is considering a future in theater. His first-grade teacher encouraged his mother to get him on stage. He's been acting since he was 7 in local theaters as well as Carousel Dinner Theater in Akron, Canton Players Guild and at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.
The parade experience is different because "it's actually on TV nationwide," Tyler Hanes said, and because "there are a lot more friends to meet."
Asked what he likes the most of acting, singing and dancing, "Acting and singing is tied for first," he said.
Backgrounds
Tyler Hanes is in seventh grade at Struthers Middle School, where he participates in band, choir and Destination Imagination.
He races go-carts at Goodhope Speedway in New Springfield, where he has sung the national anthem, and cares for a menagerie of pets at home -- a turtle, seven frogs, two fish, a cat, a dog and an iguana.
Tyler Stouffer is in sixth grade. He enrolled with eCOT, Ohio's first Internet school, this fall because his acting aspirations conflicted with the traditional school year.
He hopes to return to Hollywood this winter for more auditions as new TV shows begin filming their pilot episodes. His acting coach says he has what it takes to be a star, and "that's what keeps me going," he said.
The boys, their mothers and Tyler Stouffer's grandmother left Thursday morning for New York for a week of rehearsals, workshops and makeup sessions in preparation for the parade.
A big rehearsal Tuesday night in Herald Square will be the families' only chance to see the boys' performances up close. The Herald Square area is usually open only to Macy's executives on parade day, Cathy Hanes said.
shaulis@vindy.com