2005-06 Season Announced for Vital Children's Theatre

By: Aug. 03, 2005
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The Award winning Vital Children's Theatre (2162 Broadway, 4th Floor, at 76th St.) has announced its 2005-2006 Season which includes 5 musicals for children, performed by adults: The Nastiest Drink in the World, Radiant Ruby, The Bully, Out of Orbit--A Choose Your Own Adventure Musical and Cinderella's Mice.

The Nastiest Drink in the World features book and lyrics by Mark Loewenstern and music by John Gregor. "The hit musical from the 2002-2003 season is back by popular demand!," state production notes. "In the Kingdom of Baloneya, the law says King Fredipus is always right, even when he's wrong. But when his mistakes start to cause real harm, a shy peasant girl named Samantha concocts a delicious plan to set things right." The show runs Saturdays and Sundays at 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm, September 10 through October 16.

The second production of the season is Radiant Ruby with book and lyrics by Dante Russo (last season's Extraordinary!) and music by Rob Baumgartner Jr. The show "is the smallest tall tale there ever was! The story of seven-year-old Ruby Rubenstein and her younger brother Petrie comes to life as narrated by three goldfish called the Goldies. Ruby is on a quest to become the most popular and well-known girl in school… and the world! But will this be at the expense of losing her radiance and subtle grace? This new musical takes you on a wild ride from television sets and lemonade stands to the oval office and the edge of the world!" Radiant Ruby runs Saturdays and Sundays at 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm, October 29th through December 4th.

The Bully boasts a book by David L. Williams, and music and lyrics by John Gregor (The Nastiest Drink in the World, Mask of the Dancing Princess at Vital). "Twelve year old Sammy is the smartest kid in his school, but he's small for his age and he's constantly picked on by champion athlete and school bully Steve. When a bus mix-up strands Sammy and Steve at the wrong school, they get picked on for being 'the new kids.' With the help of outcast Meg, they make their escape and begin the long trek back to the right school. Along the way, the boys begin to learn more about what it's really like for the other and that they all might not be so different after all." The Bully runs Saturdays and Sundays at 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm, December 17, 2005 through February 5, 2006.

Out of Orbit--A Choose Your Own Adventure Musical is co-written by Ren Casey and Brianna Tyson, with music and lyrics by Casey. "A stray comet has knocked the moon off of its orbit, sending it on a direct collision course with Earth! With only 72 hours until impact, the audience must...well...save the world! They are given a team of top scientists to help come up with the solution and build the greatest shuttle the country has ever created. In this new musical, the audience faces many decisions to save the world. Who knows what path they'll end up taking." The show runs runs Saturdays and Sundays at 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm, February 18, 2006 through March 26, 2006.

The final show of the season is Cinderella's Mice with book by Justin Warner, and music and lyrics by Ben Morss. "Meet Spencer: a little mouse with big dreams. He longs for a better life, far from his friend Cinderella's wicked stepmother and nasty stepsisters. So Cinderella's fairy godmother turns him into a beautiful horse, Spencer thinks his wish has been granted! But will Spencer's wild imagination ruin Cinderella's big night with the Prince? A brand-new take on a time-honored fairy tale, Cinderella's Mice shows that even the smallest characters in a story can make a big difference." The musical runs Saturdays and Sundays at 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm, April 8 through May 14, 2006.

"The Vital Children's Theatre Company has been honored with two Awards for Excellence by the Off-Off-Broadway Review and received high acclaim from audiences and critics alike for being 'a wonderful place for parents to introduce their kids to the glories of live theatre, done well and at modest prices.' Now in its sixth year, the company is dedicated to producing entertaining and educational theatre for young audiences. To date, the company has presented 32 original productions for children and families."

Performances run Saturdays and Sundays at 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm, September 10, 2005 through May 14, 2006. There will be additional performances at 1:00 pm on Columbus Day - Monday, October 10, Veteran's Day - Friday, November 11, Martin Luther King Day - Monday, January 16, Winter Recess - President's Day, Monday, February 20, Wednesday, February 22 and Friday, February 24 and during Spring Recess - Monday, April 17, Wednesday, April 19 and Friday, April 21. Each production will have one 10:00 am Wednesday school performance on September 28, November 16, January 25, March 15 and May 3.

This season will also feature talkbacks and workshops on stage combat, story telling, play making and improvisation. One performance of each show will be performed with simultaneous sign language interpretation on Sundays at 3:00 pm, October 9, November 27, January 29, March 19 and May 7. Vital Children's Theatre's 7th Birthday Benefit will be Saturday April 1.

All tickets are $16.00, The Family Pass (five tickets to any show) is $55 and The Fun Package (five tickets and five post-show workshop admittances) is $105 before September 9th, $65 and $120 September 10th till December 31st. Shows are appropriate for ages 2-12. For reservations, visit www.theatermania.com or call (212) 352-3101 or Toll-Free at (866) 811-4111. For complete schedule and workshop information visit www.vitaltheatre.org.

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