Experience CHARLOTTE'S WEB At Old Sturbridge Village

Old Sturbridge Village has been busy spinning another exciting theatrical web: this summer the living history museum - in partnership with Brian Clowdus Experiences - brings The Charlotte's Web Experience to the Village, from July 5 - August 26. Brian Clowdus, acclaimed director of the sold-out The Sleepy Hollow Experience, will direct this epic outdoor adaptation of E.B. White's timeless and beautiful tale of friendship and self-sacrifice. Tickets go on sale to the public Saturday, April 14 just in time for April School Vacation week at the Village and online at www.osv.org.

"I am tickled pink to return to Old Sturbridge Village after the smashing success of The Sleepy Hollow Experience!" said Clowdus. "Producing a reinvented version of Charlotte's Web set in a timeless New England era in the milieu of Old Sturbridge Village is an incredible creative opportunity. Our cast of six storyteller-musicians will breathe new life into this beloved children's classic, while cows, pigs, working farmers and oxen stroll past along with all the experiential elements at the Village."

"The Freeman Farm at Old Sturbridge Village is the perfect setting for Charlotte's Web," said James Donahue, President and CEO of the living history museum, "and we are delighted to partner yet again with Brian Clowdus Experiences to infuse this beloved children's tale with new energy and excitement. The museum's interpretation of everyday life in 1830s New England mirrors the play's timeless themes of friendship, love, hard work, and perseverance, and we invite families to use this story as the thread that connects them to a past that still resonates today."

The 50-minute play is held outdoors adjacent to the Freeman Farm, a working farm that raises sheep, cattle, pigs, and chickens, and where costumed historians and farmers demonstrate the daily life of a typical New Englander in the 1830s. Media sponsors for "The Charlotte's Web Experience" are Bay State Parent and Worcester Magazine.

The Children's Literature Association named Charlotte's Web "the best American children's book of the past two hundred years," and Joseph Robinette, working with the advice of E.B. White, has created a play that captures this work in a thrilling theatrical presentation. All the enchanting characters are here: Wilbur, the irresistible young pig who desperately wants to avoid the butcher; Fern, a girl who understands what animals say to each other; Templeton, the gluttonous rat who can occasionally be talked into a good deed; the Zuckerman family; the Arables; and, most of all, the extraordinary spider, Charlotte, who proves to be "a true friend and a good writer." Determined to save Wilbur, Charlotte begins her campaign with the "miracle" of her web in which she writes, "Some pig." It's the beginning of a victorious campaign which ultimately ends with the now-safe Wilbur doing what is most important to Charlotte. This is a beautiful, knowing play about friendship that will give audiences a day of enchantment.

Integrated Experience - A Charlotte's Web Summer at Old Sturbridge Village
This production is different from other projects Clowdus has presented at the Village as it takes place during the day while the museum is open, and thus the play is part of an integrated Charlotte's Web summer when families visit the museum. "A Charlotte's Web Summer" is sponsored by CountryBank.

Part of the inspiration for hosting the play was the recent acquisition of a 19th-century piggery that Village craftsmen are actively reconstructing on site. The Allen Piggery is named for John Partridge Allen, a Sturbridge resident (and neighbor of Pliny Freeman) who added a two-bay, 15' x 20' timber-framed farm building for feeding and sheltering swine to his farm in about 1838. The original structure was meticulously dismantled and documented by Village carpenters, and is now being carefully pieced back together. Very few such New England piggeries have survived, and while the Village has long raised pigs on site, this entire story blended perfectly with Charlotte's Web. The Piggery was donated to the Village by local businessman Gary Galonek and his wife Beckie. Visitors to the museum during "A Charlotte's Web Summer" will be able to see costumed historians re-constructing the Piggery, view live piglets, and learn about the practice of raising pigs in the 1830s. Costumed historians will also present other theme-related elements in their daily work, whether it be weaving and spinning yarn, blacksmithing, farming, tin-making, and other aspects of 19th-century life. Museum Exhibits

During the production, the Village will display objects and historic documents, supplemented by graphics and original illustrations, inspired by E.B. White's famous novel, Charlotte's Web. Historic objects from the Museum Collection, such as toys and paintings, will illustrate the importance of children's roles to the New England farm family and farming traditions in the early 19th century. Manuscripts from the Research Library will highlight the importance of children to the family unit and portray the daily activities of the New England farm family. The importance of storytelling in the early 19th century will be highlighted through selected children's books from the Research Library. Additionally, "Curatorial Favorites" will feature items from the juvenile section in the Research Library, and each member of the Curatorial Department will select a relevant book from their childhood that relates to the theme.

In the famous story, Fern brings her prize pig, Wilbur, to an exhibition at the State Fair. Alongside the production of the play, the Village offers fair-themed food items such as cotton candy, funnel cakes, popcorn, and jumbo piglet-faced and spider web cupcakes. Elsewhere, deliciously designed sandwiches include "the Charlotte" [pineapple, cantaloupe, honeydew, watermelon and blueberry with cottage cheese] or "The Fern" [roasted vegetables in a wrap with hummus, tabouleh, shredded lettuce, and tomato], and more.

The award-winning Old Sturbridge Inn and Reeder Family Lodges, owned and operated by the museum, will offer special overnight packages for families who wish to stay the night before or after the Charlotte's Web Experience. Packages include admission to Old Sturbridge Village.

Tickets may be purchased in advance at osv.org, or added to a general admission purchase at the museum entrance, pending availability.
Admission to Old Sturbridge Village is $28 Adults, $26 Seniors (age 55+), $14 College Students and Youth 4-17, Children 3 and under are admitted FREE.
*No shows on August 4-5 due to Redcoats & Rebels mock battles.

For more information about the Charlotte's Web Experience at Old Sturbridge Village and to purchase tickets, visit www.osv.org. Charlotte's Web is produced by special arrangement with DRAMATIC PUBLISHING, Woodstock, Illinois.

Old Sturbridge Village, the largest living history museum in the Northeast, depicts a rural New England town of the 1830s. Each year, more than 250,000 visitors interact with costumed historians, experience up-close demonstrations of early American trades, and meet heritage breed farm animals. Situated on 200 scenic acres, the Village is a collection of more than 40 historic buildings - including homes, meetinghouses, trade shops, working farms and three water-powered mills - restaurants, shops and the Old Sturbridge Inn and Reeder Family Lodges.

Located just off the Massachusetts Turnpike and Routes I-84 and 20 in Sturbridge, Mass., Old Sturbridge Village is open year-round, but days and hours vary seasonally. Daily admission is: $28 for adults, $26 for seniors, $14 for college students and children ages 4-17, children 3 and under are admitted free. Each admission includes free parking. For details, visit www.osv.org.

Launching with Old Sturbridge Village's inaugural production of The Sleepy Hollow Experience, Brian Clowdus Experiences is an entertainment company dedicated to providing one-of-a-kind theatrical experiences.

Brian Clowdus also serves as Founder and Executive/Artistic Director of Serenbe Playhouse in Serenbe, Georgia. After being recognized nationally for his accomplishments as a theatre director and producer, Brian will collaborate with corporations, non-profits and individuals to create innovative, immersive experiences - both outdoors and indoors - that stir the imagination, senses and emotions of audience members. In a market saturated with traditional event companies, Brian Clowdus Experiences differentiates itself by breaking down the walls and redefining the rules of event production - the same way in which Brian redefined the rules of theatre at Serenbe Playhouse.

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