Weidner Center Presents, Inc is proud to announce the 2009-2010 educational, daytime school programming at the Weidner Center for the Performing Arts. Our Stage Doors Education Series has been developed to open the way for students to learn through the arts and is dedicated to serving schools, teachers and students through educational and cultural experiences.

All tickets are $7*
*With the exception of the optional Heritage Hill Laura Ingalls Wilder Day (see below).

Would you like information about receiving a scholarship for your school?

Program

Grade Levels

Curriculum Connections*

B

C

H

L

M

R

S

T

Laura Ingalls Wilder

2nd - 6th

Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing

1st - 5th

Mad Science presents Newton's Revenge 2

1st - 7th

The Very Hungry Caterpillar & Other Eric Carle Favorites

PreK - 3rd

Charlotte's Web

K - 5th

Max & Ruby

K - 3rd

Four Score and Seven Years Ago

3rd - 8th

Aesop's Fables

K - 4th

Doktor Kaboom

6th - 12th

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

3rd - 6th

*Curriculum Connections Legend

B = Based on a Book
C = Cultural Diversity
H = History/Social Studies
L = Language Arts

M = Music/Dance
R = Relationships
S = Science/Math
T = Theatre

Laura Ingalls Wilder
Wednesday, October 14, 2009 • 10am & 12:30pm
Grades: 2 - 6
Running Time: 60 minutes

Laura and her family travel across America in search of a place they can call home. Facing obstacles such as scarlet fever and eviction from their land, their pioneering spirit and family bonds are tested but never broken. This uplifting story of one of America’s most beloved authors comes to life in ArtsPower’s popular musical.

TEACHERS: This year we are offering an optional full day of Laura Ingalls Wilder activities for your students. Attend the performance at the Weidner Center and visit Heritage Hill State Historical Park where your students will participate in hands-on activities related to life on the prairie. For only $10 per student, you will receive admission to the show and Heritage Hill.

“I wanted children now to understand more about the beginnings of things…what it is that made America as the know it”  –Laura Ingalls Wilder. At Heritage Hill students will get engaged in hands-on activities as Laura Ingalls Wilder’s classic Little House books come to life. Students will be able to do many of the activities Laura wrote about: attending a school lesson, making Johnny Cakes, playing historic games and so much more. Watch and learn as students see her life jump off the page.  www.heritagehillgb.org

Space is limited. Reservations are on a first-come, first-served basis.
Both Heritage Hill Day options are now officially sold out, but space is still available to attend the 10am or 12:30pm performances of Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Select one of the following schedules on the order form:

-Top-

Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 • 10am & 12:30pm
Grades: 1 – 5
Running Time: 60 minutes

Nine-year-old Peter Hatcher’s life would be sweet if it
weren’t for Fudge, his toddler terror of a brother. Fudge
seems to get away with everything, whether he’s throwing
a tantrum at the shoe store, acting like a bird on the jungle
gym and knocking out his two front teeth, or scribbling all
over Peter’s homework! It’s enough to make him feel like
a fourth grade nothing! When Peter’s beloved pet turtle
disappears, he just knows that Fudge is behind it. This is the
last straw—how can he get his parents to pay attention to
him for a change? Two Beans Productions captures all the
humor, sibling rivalry and elementary school angst of Judy
Blume’s book in their play Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing!

-Top-

Mad Science presents Newton's Revenge 2
Friday, November 20, 2009 • 10am & 12:30pm
Grades: 1 – 7
Running Time: 60 minutes

Explore the zany side of science in this spectacular live stage show. Join Professor Pruvitt and Crash as they demystify the fundamental Laws of Motion by demonstrating the role of physics in our everyday lives. With a little help from Sir Isaac Newton, our Mad Scientists perform wacky experiments to investigate the principles of inertia, acceleration, actions and reactions.

Prepare to take cover as our scientists unveil their gravity-powered ping-pong ball launcher. Watch two teams of children use specially designed catapults to discover the power of Newton’s 3rd Law. The teams then go head-to-head in the slingshot challenge—where volunteers demonstrate all the Laws of Motion in one final scientific showdown! The interactive experiments and hilarious antics in Newton’s Revenge 2 are guaranteed to cause a big commotion about the science of motion!

-Top-

The Very Hungry Caterpillar & Other Eric Carle Favorites
Friday, January 22, 2010 • 10am Limited Availability & 12:30pm
Grades: PreK - 3
Running Time: 60 minutes with Question & Answer

After much demand, that little caterpillar is returning, along with an assortment of favorite puppet characters. The triple-bill includes the wonderful story of The Very Hungry Caterpillar’s metamorphosis into a beautiful butterfly; the fanciful account of Little Cloud's travels through the sky, and the Mixed-Up Chameleon’s discovery of his own unique nature. The whimsical tales have enchanted several generations, and Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia's acclaimed stage adaptation teaches as well as entertains. Innovative “black light” staging techniques highlight stunning puppets and props.

-Top-

Charlotte’s Web
Tuesday, February 2, 2010 • 10am SOLD OUT & 12:30pm Seats still available
Grades: K – 5
Running Time: 60 minutes

Theatreworks' production of Charlotte's Web is based on E.B. White's loving story of the friendship between a pig named Wilbur and a little gray spider named Charlotte. Wilbur has a problem: how to avoid winding up as pork chops! Charlotte, a fine writer and true friend, hits on a plan to fool Farmer Zuckerman—she will create a "miracle." Spinning the words "Some Pig" in her web, Charlotte weaves a solution which not only makes Wilbur a prize pig, but ensures his place on the farm forever. This treasured tale, featuring mad-cap and endearing farm animals, explores bravery, selfless love, and the true meaning of friendship.

-Top-

Max & Ruby
Tuesday, March 2, 2010 • 10am & 12:30pm
Grades K – 3
Running Time: 60 minutes

Big sisters have big responsibilities, especially when the
little brother is a big trouble-maker! Join in the fun as Theatreworks USA presents a lovable new musical full of fun and sibling rivalry: Max and Ruby! Ruby, a seven-year-old rabbit, loves her Grandma very much and wants to do something special for her. She gets the brilliant idea to put on a show, with music and costumes and a castle and everything! She’ll need some help, though, so she tries to enlist her little brother Max. Ruby wants to put on a play about a princess, but Max is already playing a cowboy. Ruby wants to work quietly, but Max is enjoying his noisy toys. Ruby wants to look for costumes, but Max is too busy looking for frogs! Max is no help at all, so Ruby recruits her Bunny Scout friends for assistance. But can they help her finish Grandma’s play in time? Find out in this delightful musical based on the top-rated Nickelodeon television show inspired by Rosemary Wells’ bunny siblings, Max and Ruby!

-Top-

Four Score and Seven Years Ago
Tuesday, March 9, 2010 • 10am & 12:30pm
Grades: 3 – 8
Running Time: 60 minutes

To young Lemuel, who has escaped slavery in Georgia, life in Gettysburg is everything he had dreamed it would be. His ideas about the North and the South, as well as what it means to be a free man, are challenged, however, when he unexpectedly befriends Jacob, a young Confederate soldier. The two men may be of different races and on different sides of the Civil War, but they have much to teach each other about bravery and loyalty in ArtsPower’s exciting and suspenseful musical.

-Top-

Aesop's Fables
Tuesday, March 16, 2010 • 10am & 12:30pm
Grades: K–4
Running Time: 60 minutes

Jim West Productions blend puppetry, classical music, creative thinking, story telling and geography into a visual and entertaining presentation. With the help of Aesop himself (and his faithful dog, Moral), Jim and his partners share the famous fables, including The Lion and the Mouse, The Tortoise and the Hare, and The Fox and the Grapes. This large-scale puppet production also features the music of Scarlatti, Beethoven, and Chopin.

-Top-

Doktor Kaboom!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010 • 10am & 12:30pm
Grades: 6 - 12
Running Time: 60 minutes

Doktor Kaboom! is an interactive one-man science variety show suitable for all audiences. Creatively blending theatre arts with the wonders of scientific exploration, Doktor Kaboom keeps his crowds riveted with interest and rolling with laughter. Join him for a sidesplitting journey of increasingly spectacular, and often successful, experiments and demonstrations. Using masterful improvisational skills, Doktor Kaboom takes his audience on an entertaining tour of the modern scientific method while demonstrating spectacular applications of the physical sciences.

-Top-

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
Tuesday, April 22, 2010 • 10am & 12:30pm
Grades: 3 - 6
Running Time: 60 minutes

A quest for adventure turns into a journey of self-discovery when Claudia Kincaid and her brother Jamie decide to run away from home. Their final destination—the Metropolitan Museum of Art—will introduce them to an intriguing mystery and to the most unusual friend either of them has ever made. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of E.L. Konigsburg’s Newbery Medal-winning classic, ArtsPower has created an enchanting new drama sure to captivate audiences of all ages!

-Top-