K The Ken Bradbury Foundation

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Make a Wish! — The Esprit de Corps Academy

2026 · Jacksonville, Illinois · The Esprit de Corps Academy

In the summer of 2026, The Esprit de Corps Academy of Jacksonville, Illinois brings Ken Bradbury's touring children's musical Make a Wish! to the stage as the centerpiece of its free summer theater camp for elementary and middle-school students.

Esprit de Corps is a non-profit that offers performing-arts education and experiences at no cost to local children and their families. For 2026 the academy secured three young instructors to lead the camp, and — after reading through a variety of Ken's works for the messages they carry — chose Make a Wish! The Ken Bradbury Foundation granted the academy royalty-free use of the script. It is the second summer running that Esprit has staged one of Ken's pieces, following its production of We Can Change the World! in 2025.

The music is being reconstructed for the camp by Elisabeth Werries — the cast member who composed the songs for Ken's Traveling Theatre shows and is now a professional musician in Nashville — working from the original backing tracks recovered from the Foundation's archive.

Performances

There is no admission charge; the academy welcomes donations from patrons who wish to support its work.

Credits

This is the original 2013 LLCC Traveling Theatre show — see Make a Wish! for the story, songs, and original cast.

This was a production of Ken's original work — see the show page for the full history.