Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia transforms three of Leo Lionni’s Caldecott Honor books into an enchanting theater experience for young children. Swimmy is the story of a tiny fish who uses ingenuity to fend off danger. In Frederick, a poetic mouse makes everyday life an artful experience. Inch by Inch features a lovable inchworm with a knack for measuring absolutely everything. The production incorporates an assortment of innovative puppetry styles, imaginative lighting techniques, and an original musical score.

 

   

Curriculum connections: language arts, theater arts, mathematics, visual arts, life skills

Jason and his crew set sail to the other side of the world to find the Golden Fleece and claim the throne that is rightfully his. Monsters, hungry harpies, and a sleeping dragon help make it a bumpy voyage! With just two actors, a handful of action figures, and one amazingly versatile wooden cart, Scotland’s Visible Fictions creates a wildly creative, rip-roaringly brilliant production of this timeless adventure story.

 

   

Curriculum connections: social studies, theater arts, language arts

   

Curriculum connections: dance, physical education, music, language arts, visual arts

Fred Garbo Inflatable Theater pumps up students’ imaginations! Gigantic inflatable props (including an inflatable dog) shimmer, balloon, deflate, and bounce in a rainbow of colors and a myriad of shapes. Along with the magical visual imagery, there’s juggling, dance, a little mischief, and nonstop fun. The company has charmed and delighted young audiences from Broadway to China, Chile, Japan, Spain, Brazil, and beyond.

   

Curriculum connections: visual art, mathematics, science, dance, music

Don’t expect red noses, big shoes, or tiny cars; these clowns mean business! Theatrical convention—Shakespearean or otherwise—goes out the window when three clowns descend upon the stage to perform Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Infected with ambition, they battle over the title role and end up destroying the play, as well as each other. 500 Clown’s unorthodox interpretation contains little of Shakespeare's original text, but deftly captures the essence of his ideas. “Jaw dropping! Hilarious!” —Chicago Tribune

 

   

Curriculum connections: language arts, theater arts

Choreographer Elizabeth Streb has been called “the Evel Knievel of dance.” Her work declares all-out war on gravity, combining dance, gymnastics, circus skills, and stunt-work with high-tech sound and set design to redefine the possibilities of movement. In BRAVE, she joins forces with trapeze artists and the MIT Media Lab for a perpetual-motion action adventure. Both the performers and the structures around them are in constant motion, leaping, spinning, soaring, falling, and space-shifting. “Ms. Streb is carrying dance into a new dimension.” —The New York Times

 

   

Curriculum connections: dance, physical education, science

   

 
Underwritten by

This project is partially supported by a grant from Pennsylvania Performing Arts on Tour, a program developed and funded by The Heinz Endowments; the William Penn Foundation; the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency; and The Pew Charitable Trusts; and administered by Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation.


The presentation of Philadanco was made possible by the MetLife Community Connections Fund of the National Dance Project, a program administered by the New England Foundation for the Arts.  Major support for the National Dance Project is also provided by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation with additional support from the Ford Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Curriculum connections: dance, physical education, music, social studies

Drumline LIVE brings to the stage a show-stopping marching band ensemble from America’s top historically black colleges and universities. Created by the musical team behind the hit movie, this showdown of rhythm and speed between the percussion “lines” features great music from past brass masters—such as Earth, Wind and Fire and Tower of Power—alongside the hottest contemporary hip-hop and R&B. Add the dynamic sound of trumpets and explosive choreography performed by the athletic “steppers” and dancers, and Drumline LIVE is a spectacle of the highest magnitude.

 

   

Curriculum connections: music, dance, social studies

The name says it all. The four stupendously skilled performers of Australia’s Circa zip through a showcase of circus skills, from fearless free falls and acrobatics to silly stunts and crazy clowning. Will they make it through all the acts before time runs out?

 

    

 

This tour of Circa is made possible by a grant from Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation with support from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Curriculum connections: dance, physical education, theater arts

Bo Eason performs his powerful and inspirational solo play, drawing on his real-life experience growing up in the shadow of his bigger, stronger, older brother who was a natural athlete destined for football glory. Through sheer persistence and determination, Bo overcomes his family’s low expectations and a series of devastating setbacks to make it to the NFL. Runt of the Litter is a complex story of family relationships and the importance of following a dream.

 

Please note: The performances on Wednesday and Thursday are for grades 5-8. Friday's performance is for grades 9-12.

 

   

Curriculum connections: theater arts, character education, physical education

Dan Zanes & Friends are hosting a musical party, and everyone’s invited! The former lead singer of the 1980s pop band, the Del Fuegos, Zanes has been dubbed “the crown prince of contemporary kids’ music” by People Magazine. He gives children’s classics like “Waltzing Matilda” and “The Hokey Pokey” his own rockin’ spin, mixing in folk, country, Latino grooves, and smart, inventive original songs in both English and Spanish. This is the State Theatre debut of one of the hottest bands in children’s music.

   

Curriculum connections: music, life skills, world languages, dance, science

   

Curriculum connections: theater arts, language arts

This performance contains language and subject matter that may not be appropriate for all students.

 

   

Curriculum connections: theater arts, language arts, social studies

   

Curriculum connections: language arts, drama, visual arts, music, science