Kids Can Sing performs its first Christmas concert Friday in Clovis. Kids Can Sing Facebook photo

On Friday, Kids Can Sing Fresno will host its first-ever holiday concert, “Jingle Bell Jukebox,” bringing the sounds and styling of the ’50s to holiday concertgoers.

Performing classic holiday songs with “a ’50s twist,” the concert features a classic “Christmas Story” style narrative about the introduction of the love of the holidays. Conductor and founder of Kids Can Sing Kaylene Clark says the upbeat show will be a great time for all concertgoers.

“Kids are going to be in poodle skirts and leather jackets and rolled up jeans,” Clark said.

With speaking roles, the concert styles itself with elements of both a choral performance and a musical, with several choreographed sections, recognizable tunes and a traditional holiday story.

 

The 6 p.m. concert will be held at the Clovis North High School Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for seniors, $12 for students and $9 for children, with the first 200 children in attendance receiving a free kid’s meal from Raising Cane’s.

Founded this year by Clark, Kids Can Sing is a children’s choir that offers a musical experience for children from 1st through 6th grades, providing them with not only an advanced musical experience, but also the opportunity to perform multiple times per season.

“It was unreal the amount of people that had just lost their jobs, who were living paycheck to paycheck and wanted so badly to put their kids in something but had nothing to put them in,” Clark said.

The nonprofit organization focuses on making music accessible to every child, focusing their efforts on their very name, creating an atmosphere where, no matter what background a child comes from, “Kids Can Sing.”

After receiving a $2,000 donation from a family friend that helped jumpstart the program, Clark, who teaches at Cole Elementary School in Clovis, began branding and advertising.

In addition to the younger group, this spring, Kids Can Sing will introduce a choir for older children as well, extending the invitation to children from grades 7 through 12 to participate.

“Initially it was very expensive for people to join and that was because the facility rentals were so expensive,” she said. “I wanted to level out that playing field by trying to seek more donors to sponsor kids.”

Through social media and word of mouth, Clark arranged so that around 25% of the initial choir were sponsored. In addition to full scholarships, half scholarships were also made available.

This season, around 50% of members were under scholarships.

“I told myself that eventually my goal would be to make this group completely free for all kids to be in,” she said. “I predict by next year hopefully we’ll be able to have it completely free.”

After a successful initial summer group of around 85 kids, the fall group retained around 70% of members and currently sits at 55. Spring numbers are already at 50 and families have until Jan. 17, 2023, to sign their children up.

Clark founded the choir not only to provide access to a high-quality music education experience, but also to create a welcoming environment.

“Growing up in this town I always felt like I wanted so badly to be a part of something where I felt welcome,” she said. “Unfortunately I only received that experience in choir.”

Having an additional outlet for young musicians is something that Clark not only wanted for the wellbeing of the children, but also as an opportunity to expand their performance experience.

“The biggest thing is the performance opportunities,” she said. “When you’re in a school program, you have to apply for funding, get approval, find buses, and it could take months for performance opportunities to happen.”

With Kids Can Sing, the organization is frequently invited to farmers’ markets, community events and other opportunities.