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This being
New York and not East Cupcake Nev., I can rely
on the expertise of dozens of sources for
consistently good theater, music and museums. No
enterprise geared to grandkids from two to 12
years and their grandparents, serves the
populous more felicitously than the New Victory
Theater.
THEATER
Here’s a
lean and lively video overview of New Victory’s
2010-2011 season.
Click here: YouTube -
NewVicTheater's Channel#p/u/0/p77PPcGtQDU
And here are specifics on each coming event.
The New Victory Theater
2010-2011 Season
209 W. 42 St.
646-223-3010
Unless otherwise noted, each
theater event will be presented at The New
Victory Theater. For your younger
grandchildren, booster seats are made available
at no charge.
Puss in Boots, (El gato con
botas)
World Premiere
Gotham Chamber Opera & Tectonic Theater
Project in Association with Blind Summit Theater
New York, City.
Oct. 1 - 10
A charismatic cat with mucho Latin charm
promises a poor miller unending love and
fortune, IF he pulls off a ruse involving a
hat, a cape, and a pair of boots. With a cast of
five singers providing the vocals, with puppets
from Madama Butterfly, this all new
production transforms a favorite fairy tale into
a humorous rags-to-riches operatic
adventure. Performances are available in both
the original Spanish and in English translation
with corresponding supertitles.
Ages 8+.
ZooZoo
Imago Theater
Portland, Oregon
Oct. 15 –24
ZooZoo
combines acrobatics, and innovative imagery in a
series of whimsical vignettes. With an adroit
use of light, music, clay, cloth, and paper
maché, the laws of nature are defied to create
other-worldly creatures and fantasies. Ages
4+
Nevermore: The Imaginary Life
and
Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe
U. S. Premiere
Catalyst Theater
Edmonton, Canada
Oct. 29 – Nov.
7
This darkly comic, wildly imaginative Nevermore
uses haunting music, poetic storytelling and
surreal imagery to explore the events that
shaped Poe’s career and ignited his lifelong
battle with “visions dark and sinister.” Ages
11+
Egg and Spoon
Studio 3A/B at the New 42nd St. Studios
229 W. 42 St.
Lyngo Theater Company
London, England/Venice, Italy
Nov. 2 – 21
Young children join Percy and
April to celebrate the delights of nature in a
soft, interactive adventure. Peek-a-boo
puddles, fluffy snowflakes and other surprises
bring the seasons to life with feathers becoming
chirping birds, napkins becoming princesses and
a few small leaves becoming a windswept autumn
day. Ages
2-5.
Squirm Burpee Circus:
A Vaudevillian Melodrama
The Handsome Little Devils
Denver, Colorado
Nov. 13 –28
You can count on New Victory for one to two
extraordinary circusses a season, with this
early entry a pastiche of circus skills, dance
and comedy. Mike the Handsome, Dashing Dave and
the Lovely Little Lolo make up the circus trio
who must outwit the dastardly Baron Vegan Von
Hamburger - a mustachioed villain committed to
their demise. Ages
4+
Momentum
Holiday Show
Mayumana
Tel Aviv, Israel
Dec. 4 – Jan.
2
Mayumana, established in 1996 in Tel Aviv, is a
multicultural troupe with 100 members from over
32 different countries. Momentum
is a joyous amalgam of physicality and
contagious rhythms and downbeats with no two
shows being alike. It’s an ideal showcase for
grandparent and child during Christmas and
Chanukah. Ages 4+
Nearly Lear
The Duke on 42nd St. Theater
229 W. 42 St.
Starring Susanna Hamnett
Kneehigh Theater
Toronto, Canada
Jan 7-16
What if the great story of King Lear
was told by his closest companion? In this
one-woman tour de force, actress Susanna Hamnett
plays the Fool—and every other character—to tell
a very personal and poignant story illuminated
by the masterful play by William Shakespeare.
Susanna braves the most savage storm in English
literature, honoring the beautiful language of
Lear while taking a bit of poetic
license. Co-created by Hamnett and Edith Tankus
with initial development in association with
Kneehigh Theater (Rapunzel,
New Vic 2008 and Brief Encounter, St.
Ann’s Warehouse), Nearly Lear
upends expectations of what a
Shakespeare play should be. I am personally
anxious to see it to learn how Hamnett plays
Lear’s three daughters: Goneril, Regan and
Cordelia.
Ages 12+.
Circus INcognitus
Starring Jamie Adkins
Montreal, Canada
Feb. 11 – 27
Jamie stars in this fanciful
story of a man who has something to say, but
can’t quite get it out. While teetering on
towering ladders, somersaulting on slack wire
and timing perfect pratfalls, Jamie finds some
unusual and hilarious solutions to a contentious
string of obstacles. Distinguished by a breezy,
Harold Lloyd-like persona, Jamie stoically
musters the courage to keep going when
everything goes wrong. Ages
4+
Skellig
U.S. PREMIERE
The Birmingham Stage Company
Birmingham, UK
March 4 – 13
Michael, 10 years old, discovers a strangely
mystical vagabond with a taste for brown ale and
Chinese take-out, hiding in his family’s garage.
What unfolds is a wondrous tale by David Almond
that examines the nature of family, friendship
and the bewildering connections among all
things. Originally presented at the Young Vic
in 2003. Ages
9+.
Mischief
U.S. PREMIERE
Theater-Rites and Arthur Pita
London, UK
March 18 – 27
Hailed as “an inventive encounter with movement,
music and mood” this award-winning production
marks the first commission for family audiences
by London’s famed Sadler’s Wells. Ages
4-8.
Boom Town
U.S. PREMIERE
Cirque Mechanics
Las Vegas, NV
April 8-24
Journey to the old west with a frontier
whistle-stop on the brink of an unlikely
discovery that sets off a cavalcade of zany
events. Boom Townis a veritable
showcase of colorful characters, outlandish
contraptions and astounding acrobatics.
Ages 4+.
Potato Needs a Bath
U.S. PREMIERE
Studio 3A/B at the New 42nd Street
Studios
Shona Reppe Puppets
Fife, Scotland
April 8 - 24
Your wee ones should not miss this birthday bash
at which Eggplant shows off her glamorous new
jewels, the Pears flirt and flit about, and Plum
needs a potty break. But where is Potato? No
one can dance the Mango Tango without Potato!
Before he can celebrate with his produce pals,
the muddy little spud is in dire need of a bath.
Ages 2 - 5.
The Tragical Life of
Cheeseboy
U.S. PREMIERE
The Duke on 42nd St.
Slingsby Theater Company
Adelaide, Australia
April 29 – May
8
“Are you prepared to be dazzled?” asks a
Dickensian storyteller at the start of this
intergalactic journey. When Cheeseboy’s home
planet melts into a bubbling fondue, the lad is
suddenly without family or a place to call
home. But with help from some unlikely friends,
Cheeseboy embarks on a voyage that inspires awe,
hope and a love of all things lunar.
Ages 8+
Peter and Wendy
Mabou Mines
New York City
May 6 – 22
Mabou Mines returns to the New Vic for a record
third time to enthrall a new generation of New
Vic theatergoers with their ingenious adaptation
of J.M. Barrie’s celebrated story. Karen Kandel
recreates her winning role of The Narrator
giving voice to every character. Peter Pan, the
Lost Boys and a “very classy” Hook are brought
to life using bunraku-style puppets and scraps
of cloth and paper. Ages
10 +.
(L-R) Abe Goldfarb as
Franklin, Colin Campbell McAdoo as Washington
and Jamie LaVerdiere as Jefferson in the musical
We the People,
America
Rocks.
Photo: Joan Marcus
Free Summer Theater
Theatreworks USA's
World Premiere Musical
We The People: America Rocks!
Lucille Lortel Theatre
121 Christopher St.
Mon., Tues., Wed., Fri. - 10:30 a.m. and
1 p.m.
Thurs. - 10:30 a.m., 1 p.m. and 6 p.m.
Sunday - 2 p.m.
Through Aug. 13
1-800-5007
Rock out with America's original "boy band" --
The Founding Fathers. Join George Washington,
John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin
Franklin as they trade in their powdered wigs
for power chords to help an ambitious teen. On
a quest to win her school election, Dawn cares
more about padding her college applications than
making her school a better place. With the help
of these Fab Four, she discovers that "We the
People" have the power to raise a patriotic
ruckus and make a difference! Tickets for
We The People: America Rocks!
are FREE and available on a first-come,
first-served basis in-person at the Lucille
Lortel Theatre Box Office, beginning at 9:30
a.m. weekdays and 1 p.m. Sundays. Limit of four
tickets per adult.
60 minutes. (one act).
Ages 8+.
MUSEUMS
NEW! The Wizard of Oz
Children’s Museum of Manhattan (CMOM)
212 W. 83rd St.
Sept. 25 through Jan. 9, 2011
212- 721-1223
www.cmom.org
Follow, follow, follow,
follow L. Frank Baum’s Yellow Brick Road! The
Wizard of Oz is a
stunning adventure of self-discovery for the
whole family, based largely on Mervyn Le Roy’s
beloved movie classic. Message to
Grandkids: Create your own tornado in
Dorothy’s bedroom. Explore Munchkin houses and
shake hands with Dorothy’s friends: the
Scarecrow, the Cowardly Lion and the Tin Man.
Enter The Emerald City, but “pay no attention to
the man behind the curtain.” Climb the mountain
to the Wicked Witch’s Castle to capture her
magic broom from Winged Monkeys. Finally, click
your heels three times while reciting “There’s
no place like home,” to depart the Land of Oz.
Celebrate the opening weekend of The
Wizard of Oz with workshops and Wizard of
Oz-themed events. Costume maker Nick Godlee will
share some of his own designs and help you
to make a Wizard of Oz costume element. Wear
your creation on The Wizard of Oz
opening day!
The Wizard of Oz encomprises six areas
that enable visitors to relive their favorite
scenes from the movie:
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Marquee Entrance – Learn
about the movie The Wizard of Oz
and see Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers.
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Gale Farm – Get a glimpse
of life on a farm by visiting Professor
Marvel’s wagon, the Gale farmyard, and
Dorothy’s bedroom. Learn about different
animals on the farm, how a tornado works,
and peer at optical illusions.
-
Munchkinland – Experience
the color and creativity of Munchkinland.
Visit the rainbow-colored Munchkin houses,
play with music tubes, create your own
Munchkin person and build a rainbow with
soft sculpture blocks.
-
Crossroads – Meet
Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion and
overcome different challenges to determine
your personal strengths.
-
Wicked Witch’s Castle –
Prove your courage and skill by climbing the
mountain to the Wicked Witch’s Castle and
capturing the Wicked Witch’s broom from
Winged Monkeys.
-
Emerald City – Explore
Emerald City, experiment with the different
properties of light and create special
effects.
The Wizard of Oz
Children’s Educational Exhibition was created by
Miami Children’s Museum and SPARKS, in
conjunction with Warner Bros. Consumer Products.
THE WIZARD OF OZ and all related characters and
elements are trademarks of and © Turner
Entertainment Co
KIDS TRAVEL DOC
Karl Neumann MD is a friend who is both a
gifted, peripatetic pediatrician and one of the
country’s leading travel authorities; in short,
he is The Kids Travel Doc. His words to the
wise could be of inestimable importance to you
as a loving grandparent.
Click here: Welcome >> Kids Travel Doc: A
pediatrician's guide to travel and outdoor
recreational activities
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