Hannah Kobayashi, a 22-year-old Hermosa Beach performer and recent Syracuse University graduate, has been selected for the Young Artist Project at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts. The program gives its cast just 14 days to create a fully original show from scratch.

Kobayashi is one of 15 performers chosen from nearly 200 applicants for the 17th annual program, run by Phantom Projects Theatre Group. No pre-existing scripts, music, or choreography allowed. Every word, note, and movement must be built from scratch before the curtain rises on Thursday, August 6.

The stakes are real. Phantom Projects founder and artistic director Steve Cisneros reviews the cast's work at 4 a.m. at the halfway mark. If it doesn't meet his standard, the group starts over with only seven days left.

"Our audience must say, 'Wow, what an incredible show, and I can't believe they created this in 14 days,'" Cisneros said in a July 23 announcement. "It's unacceptable if they walk out saying, 'what did you expect, they only had 14 days.'"

Cisneros said this year's cast showed strong creative chemistry from the first meeting, with participants immediately bouncing ideas around. He called the 2026 group the most geographically diverse in the program's history, with artists traveling from Costa Rica, Italy, Colorado, Arizona, and New York.

Kobayashi, who earned her BFA in musical theatre from Syracuse, joins fellow South Bay performer Ian Pirotto, 21, of Torrance, a UCLA student also in the cast.

The program gives participants access to a 5,000-square-foot rehearsal space, the 1,300-seat La Mirada Theatre stage, thousands of costumes and props, and mentorship from a professional production team. Phantom Projects, a nonprofit and resident presenting group at La Mirada Theatre, founded the Young Artist Project in 2007. The program blends drama, hip-hop, poetry, comedy, film, dance, and storytelling into a single cross-disciplinary performance.

How to attend: The public performance is Thursday, August 6, at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, 14900 La Mirada Blvd., La Mirada. Tickets are available at PhantomProjects.com/YoungArtistProject or by calling the box office at 714-944-9801.