Charlotte’s Web
TheatreworksUSA
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

This timeless E. B. White classic follows the friendship between the miraculous Charlotte, a gray spider, and loveable Wilbur, a barnyard pig. Charlotte saves the day by spinning a miracle to save Wilbur from a sad fate. Charlotte’s Web teaches children about friendship, selfless love and bravery while entertaining them with a cast of endearing characters.

Run time: 60 minutes
Recommended: Grades 2 - 5
Curriculum: Character Education, Language Arts
Study Guide (PDF)

Leo Lionni’s Swimmy, Frederick and Inch by Inch
Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Three favorite characters return in these tales drawn from the pages of Leo Lionni’s Caldecott Honor books. Swimmy tells the tale of a tiny fish that uses ingenuity to fend off danger. Frederick, a poetic mouse, makes everyday life an artful experience, and a lovable inchworm shares his facility for measuring absolutely everything. These stories are wonderfully translated to puppet theater, featuring an assortment of innovative puppetry styles, imaginative lighting techniques and an original musical score.

Run time: 60 minutes
Recommended: Pre K - Grade 2
Curriculum: Art, Language Arts, Math, Music
Study Guide (PDF)
Clip of the show

A Theater Vision Day: Lively Learning with Leo Lionni
With Linda Penn and the Lourdes Life Lab
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
10 a.m. - 1:15 p.m.

Classes attending a Leo Lionni performance will increase their understanding and enjoyment of theater, science and language arts in this exciting day. The Lourdes Life Lab crew provides a language arts window to the land and water world of living things and makes concept-rich learning come alive. Participants enjoy their packed lunches in our Commons area.
Cost: $10 includes ticket price and Life Lab presentation

Run time: Show - 60 minutes, Presentation - 75 minutes
Grades 1 and 2
Limit: 80 participants

Max and Ruby
TheatreworksUSA
Monday, October 29, 2007
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Big sisters have big responsibilities, especially when the little brother is a big trouble maker! Follow the escapades of beloved bunny siblings Max and Ruby in a brand new musical inspired by Rosemary Wells’ books and based on the popular Nickelodeon television program. Learn what happens when Ruby attempts to give her grandma a most treasured gift – a musical with all the trimmings.

Run time: 60 minutes
Recommended: Grades K - 3
Curriculum: Character Education, Language Arts, Music
Study Guide

Frankly Ben
INTRAMUSIC theatricals
Monday, November 5, 2007 • 10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Benjamin Franklin, American icon, has come to represent the epitome of achievement in scientific inquiry, civic duty and a well-lived life. But Mr. Franklin was once just a kid! This lively contemporary musical imagines what challenges and decisions young Ben Franklin might have faced by introducing his modern counterpart, 15-year-old Ben, who is inquisitive, mischievous and inventive. Ben’s “Junto” Club friends set out to assure that Ben fulfills his destiny and realizes his potential. Frankly Ben introduces young audiences to the magical work of scientific invention and the accomplishment of self achievement. Theater goers will enjoy watching as Ben fulfills his destiny or gets voted off the continent!

Run time: 60 minutes
Recommended: Grades 4 - 9
Curriculum: American History, Language Arts, Science, Social Studies
Study Guide (PDF)

Professor Gizmo’s Fun & Science Show
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Professor Gizmo, Two-lips and Mr. Brain combine fun and learning in this exciting, fast-paced show that presents science concepts tied to curriculum standards for middle grades. Featuring colorful props, special effects and larger-than-life puppet-like characters, Professor Gizmo’s show encourages total audience involvement. Every student becomes a Junior Scientist as the audience joins Professor Gizmo in tackling scientific issues that face society today – pollution, recycling, and above all, the importance of education.

Run time: 60 minutes
Recommended: Grades 3 - 5
Curriculum: Health, Science
Study Guide (PDF)

Freedom Bound
Mad River Theater Works of Ohio
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Thursday, February 7, 2008
10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Freedom Bound relates the true story of the “Rescue Case of 1857,” the most famous incident in the history of the Underground Railroad in Ohio. Fugitive slave Addison White travels the “Railroad” to a small Ohio town. There he meets farmer Udney Hyde, who becomes a mentor and friend. Hyde challenges White to think about the opportunities and the “bonds” associated with freedom. When White’s master sends a slave catcher to claim the runaway, the town joins Hyde in protecting the slave. Featuring traditional and original American folk songs accompanied by live instrumental music, this powerful Mad River Theater Works drama brings Ohio and American history to life and provokes reconsideration of the meaning of freedom.

Run time: 60 minutes
Recommended: Grades 5 - 12
Curriculum: American History, Language Arts, Music, Social Studies
Study Guide (PDF)

The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Other Eric Carle Favourites
Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

He’s back for another encore! The ever popular Very Hungry Caterpillar returns to the Franciscan Center, accompanied by other Eric Carle favorites, The Mixed-Up Chameleon and The Little Cloud. Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia combines “black light” theater, masterful puppetry, delightful music and special effects sure to delight young audiences. A post-performance demonstration and Q&A session allows young audiences to meet the puppeteers and learn more about the magic of theater.

Run time: 60 minutes
Recommended: Grades PreK - 2
Curriculum: Art, Language Arts, Music, Math, Science
Eric Carle website
Clip of the show
Study Guide (PDF)

A Theater Vision Day: Simply Science with the Very Hungry Caterpillar
With Linda Penn and the Lourdes Life Lab
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
10 a.m.

Classes attending The Very Hungry Caterpillar enhance their understanding and enjoyment of theater, science and language arts in this unique day of activities. The Life Lab Crew presents an exciting Life Cycle Science Session that links storytelling and language arts with concept-rich science experiences for fun-filled “whole child” learning. Participants enjoy their packed lunches in the Commons area.

Cost: $10 includes ticket price and Life Lab presentation
Run time: Show - 60 minutes, Presentation - 75 minutes
Recommended: Grades 1 and 2
Limit: 80 participants

Twelfth Night
National Players
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Thursday, March 6, 2008
10 a.m.

National Players recreates a masterpiece with their rendition of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. The popular comedy focuses on twins Sebastian and Viola and their struggles to be reunited after a shipwreck. Young theater goers especially enjoy this classic tale that involves mistaken identity, misdirected passion, revelry, foolhardiness, madness and unrequited love. National Players makes Shakespeare classics accessible to young audiences.

All seats: $8.50
Run time: 90 minutes
Curriculum: Drama, Language Arts, Literature
Twelfth Night Resources

Theater Vision Day
Backstage with the National Players
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Thursday, March 6, 2008
10 a.m - 1:30 p.m.

Several interactive sessions are presented by the National Players cast in this favorite Theater Vision offering. Students see Twelfth Night, eat their packed lunches in the Franciscan Center Commons, and then explore behind the scenes with the multi-talented National Players cast. Includes an onstage/backstage tour, background about the life and training of actors, a “hands on” demonstration of stage movement and combat and an interactive improvisation session.

Cost: $11.50 (includes ticket price and National Players sessions)
Run time: Show - 90 minutes, Presentation - 90 minutes

My Heart in a Suitcase
Arts Power
Tuesday, March 11, 2008 • 10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008 • 10 a.m. only

My Heart in a Suitcase is a compelling dramatic adaptation of Anne Lehmann Fox’s courageous autobiographical account of her experiences as a 12-year-old fleeing Nazi Germany. The show chronicles the tragic events that forced Anne and 10,000 other Jewish children to escape from Germany on the Kindertransport, afraid and uncertain about what the future would hold for them and for the families they were forced to leave behind. This gripping dramatic tribute to the power of love and the strength of the human sprit returns to our stage by popular demand.

Run time: 60 minutes
Recommended: Grades 5 - 10
Curriculum: Character Education, Language Arts, Social Studies, World History

Theater Vision Day: Through the Eyes of a Friend - The World of Anne Frank
Presented by Living Voices
Tuesday, March 11, 2008 • 10 a.m. - 1:15 p.m.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008 • 10 a.m. - 1:15 p.m.

Classes attending My Heart in a Suitcase have a unique opportunity to expand their theater experience and enhance their understanding of the world of Anne Frank and the effects of the Holocaust on Anne and her contemporaries. An actress portrays a friend of Anne, intertwining her moving story with archival film footage from the Holocaust era. The presentation is followed by an in-depth discussion during which students can question the performer.

Cost: $10 includes ticket price and Living Voices presentation
Run time: Show - 60 minutes, Presentation - 75 minutes
Recommended: Grades 5 - 9

Study Guide (PDF)

The Mystery of King Tut
TheatreworksUSA
Thursday, April 3, 2008
10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

The Mystery of King Tut interweaves two fascinating stories: the account of archeologist Howard Carter, who in 1922 discovered the tomb of the Egyptian King Tutankhamen; and the story of the mysterious death of King Tut, the “boy king” who ruled Egypt in the 14th century B.C. Upon discovering Tut’s tomb, Carter begins to unravel the mysterious circumstances of Tut’s untimely death, uncovering a tale of murder, politics and betrayal. In a story that moves between 1922 and 1400 B.C., the archeologist conjures a world that he enters and, though he ultimately fails, tries to change. Music, adventure and Egyptology highlight an intriguing story of important historic events.

Run time: 60 minutes
Recommended: Grades 4 - 8
Curriculum: Social Studies, World
History, Language Arts
Study Guide (PDF)

Madeline and the Bad Hat
ArtsPower
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Based on the book by Ludwig Bemelmans, this colorful new musical chronicles what happens when Madeline, her roommates and Miss Clavel meet Pepito, their rambunctious, slingshot-toting new neighbor, who is followed by trouble wherever he goes. As the amusing story unfolds, the sworn enemies get to know each other and become good friends. ArtsPower’s touching musical teaches the pitfalls of relying on first impressions.

Run time: 60 minutes
Recommended: Grades 1 - 4
Curriculum: Character Education, Language Arts

The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley
SOLD OUT
INTRAMUSIC theatricals
Monday, April 21, 2008
10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Stanley Lambchop is your normal, everyday kid – except that he’s FLAT! In this whirlwind musical travelogue, Stanley travels the world seeking a solution to his unusual problem. He’s stamped, posted and cancelled from South Africa to Mexico and beyond. Wherever Stanley goes, he meets new friends, learns about different cultures and closes in on his goal of being a three-dimensional boy once more. This entertaining presentation promotes literacy and cultural understanding in a unique way.

Run time: 60 minutes
Recommended: Grades 1 - 4
Curriculum: Character Education, Geography, Language Arts
Study Guide (PDF)

The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere
TheatreworksUSA
Tuesday, April 22, 2008 • 10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Paul Revere again rides into the Franciscan Center in the retelling of the famous story of a humble silversmith caught up in the uncertainty and pressures of the American Revolution. Under pressure from his revolutionary friends John Hancock and Samuel Adams, Revere must decide if he will join the Sons of Liberty and take a stand against British tyranny. Audiences will be enthralled as events unfold and Paul Revere must make a choice between what is easy and what is right. The thrilling musical about this pivotal moment in American history includes a unique combination of music, drama and humor.

Run time: 60 minutes
Recommended: Grades 4-8
Curriculum: American History, Social Studies, Language Arts
Study Guide (PDF)

Theater Vision Day
Presented by Bob Ford and the Elixir Trio
Music of Our Forefathers: Songs and Stories from America’s History
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
10 a.m. - 1:15 p.m.

Don’t miss this opportunity to expand your students’ theater experience and enhance their understanding and appreciation of American history through our country’s music and folklore. Participants see a performance of Paul Revere, eat their packed lunches in the Commons and enjoy a two-part presentation by Bob Ford and the Elixir Trio. These professional performer/educators bring to life songs and stories from America’s 18th and 19th centuries and lead students in music and rhythm activities.

Cost: $10 includes ticket price and Bob Ford/Elixir presentation
Run time: Show - 60 minutes, Presentation - 75 minutes
Recommended: Grades 4 - 8