Way Off Broadway Dinner Theatre Announces Their 2011 Season

The Way Off Broadway Dinner Theatre has been one of the most unique entertainment venues in the region since it first opened. Offering a fantastic dinner combined with a Broadway-style show, the Way Off Broadway experience is a full evening of leisure and entertainment. But the dinner theatre is only on piece of what makes up Way Off Broadway. In 1996, the theatre opened, what has become, it's wildly popular Children's Theatre. To this day, the Way Off Broadway Children's Theatre is the only children's lunch matinee offered in the area.

Way Off Broadway has always been at the forefront of family entertainment offering musical stage adaptations of popular fairytales and children's stories. From Rapunzel to the Aladdin, Cinderella to Jack and his beanstalk, some of the most famous storybook characters have come to life on the Way Off Broadway stage.

When the holidays roll around, The Children's Theatre's Christmas show becomes one of the hottest tickets in town, usually selling out far before Santa Claus actually arrives. One of The Children's Theatre's most successful productions was the world premiere staging of Robert Barry's Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree in 2005. Until that time, the only entertainment group to obtain the rights to adapt Barry's story into a live action version was Jim Henson's Muppets.
Over the years, as times have changed, so have the interest of children. While some fairytales such as Cinderella and Sleep Beauty will never be forgotten and always be family favorites, there are many new characters and stories that children want to see live on stage. Recognizing the change in interests and wanting to continue to be a leader in entertaining children and introducing them to live theatre. As the 2011 Season begins, Way Off Broadway has set out to bring a whole new life to The Children's Theatre.

The season begins on January 29th when Way Off Broadway brings its first Disney production to the theatre with 101 Dalmations Kids running through March 19th. The spring brings The Three Little Pigs, April 9th through June 12th. For the fall, the theatre is working on bringing another area premiere of a "big name" entertainment franchise to Frederick and will be announcing the title soon, pending contract agreements. Rounding out the year, the original ice man, Frosty, returns to Way Off Broadway from November 12th to January 7, 2012.

Disney's 101 DALMATIANS KIDS
January 29 - March 19, 2011
The Children's Theatre kicks of its 2011 with a big new production straight from the Disney vaults. In a loving home in the city of London, Dalmatian parents, Pongo and Perdita happily raise their Dalmatian puppies, until the monstrous Cruella De Vil plots to steal them for her new fur coat! Join all the spotted dogs, as they daringly rescue the puppies from Cruella and her bumbling henchmen. Disney and Way Off Broadway meet for the first show of the year!

THE THREE LITTLE PIGS
April 9 - June 12, 2011
Way Off Broadway adds a fun twist to the familiar tale of The Three Little Pigs this spring when Elmer, Homer, and Ellie Mae Little-Pig return to the stage. Elmer - an Elvis-loving, singer wannabe, Homer - a brainiac, and Ellie Mae - a piglet with Hollywood stardom in her eyes find themselves the target of a maniacal land developer out to steel their homes. It's up to the Little-Pigs to outwit Virginia A. Wolf and her fumbling, bumbling sidekick, Frankie, in this fast-paced, hilarious adaptation perfect for children of all ages.

A BIG Area Premiere - To Be Announced
September 17 - November 5, 2010

FROSTY
November 12, 2011 - January 7, 2012
He's back! The original ice man himself. It's cold outside and Frosty is back with more fun and more songs in this popular Way Off Broadway original. Come watch how a classroom full of children handle a magical snowman as he comes to life. It's fun for the whole family. Make your reservations early though, because while our Children's Theatre tends to fill up quickly, Frosty fills up very quickly!

"We are very excited about the 2011 Children's Theatre Season," says Bill Kiska, Way Off Broadway's Executive Producer. "The productions will be bigger, we'll have brand new shows coming to the stage, all adding up to be a great season and lots of fun."

What makes The Children's Theatre experience even more entertaining is the fact that the costume characters from the show are the ones serving lunch to the guests giving everyone a chance to meet them before they perform on stage for them.

"For many children," points out Susan Thornton, the Director of Children's Theatre, "this is their first introduction to live theatre so we want to make that special and memorable for them. And you haven't lived until you've had Papa Bear or Snow White serve you pizza."
Not only has Way Off Broadway's Children's Theatre become a popular entertainment destination for families looking for a fun weekend activity, it has also become a great spot for birthday parties and school trips.

Children's Theatre performances are every Saturday afternoon and the 2nd and 4th Sunday of each month, as well as select added weekday performances throughout the year. Tickets are $16 per person with birthday party packages and school group rates also available.
To learn about all of Way Off Broadway's productions, visit the theatre's website at www.wayoffbroadway.com or call the Box Office at (301) 662-6600.

The Children's Theatre is part of The Way Off Broadway Dinner Theatre, a leader in the region's performing arts community since it first opened in 1995. Under the direction of the Kiska Family since 2002, WOB has produced such productions as A Funny Thing . . . Forum, Guys & Dolls, Steel Magnolias, Oklahoma!, Grease, Fiddler on the Roof, The Odd Couple, A Chorus Line, The Sound of Music, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Evita, and Cats, as well as the regional and area premieres of Neil Simon's The Goodbye Girl - The Musical, Jerry Herman's La Cage aux Folles, the musical comedy The Wedding Singer, Mel Brooks' The Producers, and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. Located along Route 40 West, the Golden Mile in Frederick, the theatre, in addition to its Mainstage and Children's Theatre, produces a variety of special events throughout the year. Way Off Broadway's 2011 Mainstage Season features The Drowsy Chaperone, Rodgers and Hammerstein's South Pacific, Hairspray, Chicago, and Christmas Tidings.

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