The Growing Stage Sets 34th Main Stage Season

The Growing Stage - The Children's Theatre of New Jersey, located in the Historic Palace Theatre on Route 183 in Netcong, New Jersey is proud to present its 34th Main Stage Season:

REALLY, ROSIE: October 2 - 18, 2015

Book and Lyrics by Maurice Sendak

Music by Carole King

Rosie, the sassiest kid on her block of Brooklyn's Avenue P, entertains herself and her friends by acting out show biz fantasies, notably directing and starring in an Oscar winning movie.

Written by the author and illustrator of Where the Wild Things Are and other popular children's books, Really Rosie is a jewel for children and adults. Author, Maurice Sendak, is a winner of a Caldecott Medal, National Book Award, and a National Medal of the Arts. Composer, Carole King, is a winner of a National Academy of Songwriters Lifetime Achievement Award, a Grammy Trustees Award, the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the Library of Congress's Gershwin Award for Popular Song.

A CHRISTMAS CAROL - The Musical: November 20 - December 20. 2015

Music by Alan Menken

Lyrics by Lynn Ahrens

Book by Mike Ockrent and Lynn Ahrens

Based on the story by Charles Dickens

Broadway heavy hitters Alan Menken (Disney's Beauty And The Beast, Disney's The Little Mermaid, Little Shop Of Horrors); Lynn Ahrens (Ragtime, Seussical, Once On This Island) breathe fantastic new life into the classic tale of A Christmas Carol.

Ebenezer Scrooge is a prosperous curmudgeon who believes personal wealth is far more valuable than the happiness and comfort of others. With an infuriated "Bah! Humbug!" Scrooge summates his feelings of Christmas tidings and charitable giving, but he's forced to face his selfish ways when three ghosts on Christmas Eve lead him through his Past, Present, & Future. Thanks to their guidance, Scrooge recognizes his faults and greets Christmas morning with a cheerful "Happy Christmas" before spending the day reconnecting and sharing love with those that mean the most to him. A Christmas Carol is a spectacular adaptation of Charles Dickens's most well-known story.

THE BOOK OF D - World Premiere: February 12 - 21, 2016

Book by Cody Daigle-Oriens

D is a young outcast who escapes into a world of stories. He keeps a book, The Book of D, to grapples with the tough things in his life - his parents' divorce, his lack of friends, and the reasons for everything. When he makes a new friend, Blu, who introduces him to Greek

mythology, friendship becomes a new story for D to write.

JAMES & THE GIANT PEACH: March 11 - April 3, 2016

Book by Timothy Allen McDonald

Music and Lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul

Based on the book James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl

TYA Version

Roald Dahl's James & The Giant Peach is now a Theatre for Young Audiences musical for the whole family to enjoy! Featuring a wickedly tuneful score by the TONY Award-nominated team of Pasek and Paul (Dogfight and A Christmas Story the Musical) and a curiously quirky book by Timothy Allen McDonald (Roald Dahl's Willy Wonka, The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley), critics rave James & the Giant Peach is a "masterpeach!"

When James is sent by his conniving aunts to chop down their old fruit tree, he discovers a magic potion which results in a tremendous peach - and launches a journey of enormous proportions. Suddenly, James finds himself in the center of the gigantic peach among human-sized insects with equally oversized personalities, but after it falls from the tree and rolls into the ocean; the group faces hunger, sharks and plenty of disagreements. Thanks to James' quick wit and creative thinking, the residents learn to live and work together as a family. The dangerous voyage is a success, but the adventure takes a whole new twist once they land on the Empire State Building.

A delightfully offbeat adaptation of the classic Roald Dahl adventure, the creative possibilities with James & The Giant Peach are endless. Actors will love playing the outlandish characters and performing brand new material from one of Broadway's hottest duos.

HOW I BECAME A PIRATE: May 13 - 22, 2016

Book, Music and Lyrics by Janet Yates Vogt & Mark Friedman

Based upon the book "How I Became a Pirate"

Written by Melinda Long and Illustrations by David Shannon

TYA Version

Sail off on a fantastic musical excursion when a band of comical pirates lands at North Beach looking for an expert digger to join their crew. Braid Beard and his mates enlist young Jeremy Jacob, as they try to find the perfect spot to bury their treasure. Jeremy finds that adventuring can be lots of fun, but also learns that love and home are treasures you can't find on any map!

The whole family will love this delightful and swashbuckling musical adventure! Terrific songs like A Good One to Boot, Green Teeth, I'm Really Just a Sensitive Guy, Talk Like a Pirate, Soccer by the Rules, Pirates Dot Arrgh, and many others will have your audience rolling in the aisles and leaving the theatre secretly wishing for Captain Braid Beard and the gang to one day pay them a visit. Arrgh!

Ticket Information:

The Growing Stage continues FUN-tastic Fridays with all tickets $15! Saturday and Sunday tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for children and seniors. 2015 - 2016 Season Ticket Packages go on sale August 1st. To place your reservation or order a ticket package, please visit www.growingstage.com or contact the Growing Stage Box Office at (973) 347-4946 or e-mail at boxoffice@growingstage.com. Group rates and Birthday Party packages are available.