WHBPAC to Present Swazzle's DREAM CARVER, 2/3-5

Part of the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center's mission is to provide "premier arts education programs to the widest and most diverse audiences." It is with that in mind that the WHBPAC presents this beautiful, English-Spanish musical play to young children this February.

Based on Diana Cohn's book of the same name, this bright musical tells the tale of Mateo, a young boy in Oaxaca, Mexico. Mateo's father has taught him to carve small wooden toys in the traditional way, but at night Mateo dreams of fantastic, colorful animals that inspire him to break tradition and carve his own way. Featuring a cast of Broadway veteran puppeteers whose credits include Avenue Q and Disney Junior - Live On Stage!, this bilingual musical explores the importance of tradition and culture while at the same time following one's own dreams.

Dream Carver features a variety of colorful handcrafted puppets, including large-scale, full-body hand puppets, rod puppets and black-light puppets. The set is a multilevel environment that evokes a pastoral Mexican landscape and captures the essence of the book's illustrations.

Swazzle is a Southern California-based company specializing in puppetry for film, television and the stage. They have performed hundreds of shows in venues across the country and worked on productions of every size, including Avenue Q, Shrek the Musical, Little Shop of Horrors and The Pee-Wee Herman Show on Broadway. Among Swazzle's television credits are creating puppets for and puppeteering on The Simpsons, Disney Junior and most recently, an Old Spice commercial featuring football player Terry Crews.

To purchase tickets, contact Cheryl Wheeler at 631-288-2350, ext 102.