Erin Leigh Peck News

The Best Bets for Kids and Family Theatre this Summer Is it just me, or is everyone a bit on edge? School is ending, schedules are changing, nannies are quitting and those of us who aren't spending the summer on the beach are wondering what in the world we are going to do with the kids and if it will be air-conditioned. Here are a few suggestions to keep everyone cool and entertained.

Lauren Kennedy: Timing is Everything While Actress and Super Mom Lauren Kennedy does her part to always see the silver lining in any situation, it does seem as though the stars tend to align for this Broadway veteran. After doing plenty of long running Broadway shows (Les Mis, Sunset Boulevard and Side Show, to name a few), Parenthood struck at a convenient career moment. I wanted to find out how Lauren makes it all come together so smoothly.

A liberal young woman goes undercover as a right-wing shock-jock pundit. Can she hold on to who she was, or will she buy into her own hype?

A liberal young woman goes undercover as a right-wing shock-jock pundit. Can she hold on to who she was, or will she buy into her own hype?

When I found out I'd be covering Wonderland for BroadwayWorld, I wasn't sure if I should bring my seven-year-old daughter. As most of you know by now, the whole premise of this column is a mom (me) bringing her kids to the theatre and reporting back to you about the experience. But that doesn't mean I'm going to subject my kid to something she's not prepared for, and in this case, the decision was not obvious to me.

Recently, I had the pleasure of taking my seven-year-old daughter to her very first Broadway show. (I don't count the time was so graciously invited by a friend's grandmother to enjoy full-price, orchestra seats to Lion King and ended up watching from the monitors in the lobby after running out of the theatre in fear. She was only four.) After months of eagerly co-piloting her mother through the New York children's theatre scene, it was finally time to break into the majors. What better first Broadway show could there be for a nice Jewish girl and her mother than Sister Act the musical!

In preparation for my family's visit to Dreamworks Theatricals' MADAGASCAR LIVE, now showing at Radio City through April 24th, I rented the original film from an actual Blockbuster store. This was because I couldn't find it on-demand or instant streaming from Netflix or Amazon or even for purchase on iTunes. I couldn't even find a copy of MADAGASCAR at my local Blockbuster Express kiosk. I had to put on shoes and walk to an actual Blockbuster store where I nabbed up one of only two available copies of this apparently now classic film. It was all so very 1990's (except I was in my 2011 body....darn it).

About 40 minutes South of the starry lights of Broadway, along New Jersey Transit's Midtown Direct line, you'll find the town of Maplewood, New Jersey and it's neighbor, South Orange. Dubbed 'Where Broadway Comes Home to Sleep', this idyllic suburb is home to a healthy contingent of commuting, Broadway performers, many of whom are parents. Lucky for those of us who are true fans, these talented suburbanites have created a new theatre company housed in the beautiful, South Orange Performing Arts Center (SOPAC). Named MDR (Midtown Direct Rep) after the train line that gets its members to work eight times a week, the company includes an impressive list of some of Broadway's best including Norbert Leo Butz, Christiane Noll, and Michele Pawk just to name a few.

Given all that has been happening on planet Earth lately....Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Middle-East unrest, Charlie Sheen....it seems like a perfect moment to take off into outer space and to explore our options elsewhere. And that's exactly what Allie, a nine-year-old dreamer from Skokie, Illinois, sets out to do in the Vital Theatre Company's latest production, AWESOME ALLIE: FIRST KID ASTRONAUT.

When my friend Erin asked me to check out GUSTAFER YELLOWGOLD'S INFINITY SOCK with my four and seven-year-old daughters and then write about my experience, I was both excited and nervous. I was excited because my always 'on the go' family is constantly looking for new things to do and see around the city, but I had some apprehension about the 'job' part of this. You see, ever since becoming a mom, I have involuntarily started taking naps when at shows. Perhaps this has something to do with the fact that I never have a stretch during the day without hearing whining and ‘mommy' every other minute? I agreed to take on the challenge, and hoped for an engaging, upbeat show that would help me stay awake and interested.

Following a successful launch at the New York Musical Theater Festival (NYMF) in 2010, Artists WithOut Limits (AWOL) Theatre Project, Inc. announces the second annual presentation of 8Minute Musicals, a program that challenges emerging musical theatre writers and composers to create 8 original 8-minute musicals in just two weeks. An impressive collection of theatrical talents are strategically placed into teams and given a common theme as inspiration for their work. The freshly-inked pieces are fully staged, briefly rehearsed, then presented to the public on Monday, March 14 at the TBG Theatre.

Following a successful launch at the New York Musical Theater Festival (NYMF) in 2010, Artists WithOut Limits (AWOL) Theatre Project, Inc. announces the second annual presentation of 8Minute Musicals, a program that challenges emerging musical theatre writers and composers to create 8 original 8-minute musicals in just two weeks.

Recently I got some solid 'Broadway Mom' advice from Super Moms and Broadway veterans Marissa Jaret Winokur and Kerry Butler. This month I got to continue my quest to find the secret to having it all when I spoke to Jessica Phillips, a mother of two who is currently playing Marion in Broadway's 'Priscilla Queen of the Desert'.

Following a successful launch at the New York Musical Theater Festival (NYMF) in 2010, Artists WithOut Limits (AWOL) Theatre Project, Inc. announces the second annual presentation of 8Minute Musicals, a program that challenges emerging musical theatre writers and composers to create 8 original 8-minute musicals in just two weeks.

Arts and Artists at St. Paul will continue its Songbook concert series on Monday, February 28th at 6PM at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center. The concert will be held in the Bruno Walter Auditorium - 111 Amsterdam Avenue - just south of 65th Street.

Arts and Artists at St. Paul will continue its Songbook concert series on Monday, February 28th at 6PM at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center. The concert will be held in the Bruno Walter Auditorium - 111 Amsterdam Avenue - just south of 65th Street.

Last Sunday an old college friend put me to shame. Like most parents, I'm constantly looking for new and challenging projects to share with my children and then not doing any of them because we don't have any time and everyone just wants to watch TV. But my friend, actor and writer Gregory Jones (who I met in college about three thousand years ago), is not most parents. When Greg's nine-year-old daughter Hannah asked him to write a play with her, he challenged her to come up with a story. She did, and he got to work. A year later, they found themselves at the New York Public Library trying out their new play in front of an audience, and this is where my daughter and I discovered the story of 'Boris and the Really Boring Books'.

Hottest Articles on BroadwayWorld.com from this weekend Sunday, February 6, 2011 - Sunday, February 6, 2011.

Let's just get one thing straight. My seven-year-old daughter does NOT like pink. Don't just think she likes pink ‘cause she's a girl and don't think that just because she's sitting in the audience of the Vital Theatre Company's long-running hit PINKALICIOUS, recently extended through March 11 at the Vinyard's Dimson Theatre, that it means she's some 'pinky' kind of girl. She went through her pink phase, but now she's all about yellow. Got it?

One of my favorite mom friends just took her three boys to see their first Broadway show and was kind enough to write about the experience. I hope this account brings back memories of your 'first' as it did for me. (Peter Pan with Sandy Duncan circa 1980). Thanks, Julie, for your contribution to BWW Jr.