Theatre and Performances You Can’t Miss in the New Year

When I was on vacation in Arizona last week, I was desperately searching for theatre productions to go to with my kids. We ended up at a middling play that centered on Winnie the Pooh and his familiar friends. While it was cute, I wanted something more exciting and artistic to chew on- and more than one play to choose from. How lucky we are that January has come and with it a menu of varied theater and performances that could occupy your entire month. I’m not sure how you are going to choose- but “Hands Up”, “Hot Peas ‘N Butter” are definites for me and I think I will attend a couple of the Dutch debuts at the New Victory by myself since I am so anxious to see these award winners but my children are still too young to handle the withering relationship of Wuthering Heights or the evil spirited Rumplestiltskin.

Stam-Pede: Percussive Dance by 7 Companies
If you are into dance, this impressive collection of companies performing various types of percussive dance, should be on your list. Travel the dance world by seeing flamenco, Irish dance, body percussion (particularly exciting for kids), tap dance and Bharata Natyam (a classical dance form from the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu,). All of this is Stam-Pede, an afternoon of the very best in percussive dance by seven celebrated companies and one up and coming artist.  Participating companies include:  Chicago Tap Theatre; Darrah Carr Dance; David Parker and The Bang Group; Maya de Silva & Flamenco Revolucion; SLURP by Adam Metzger; and Parijat Desai Dance Company. In addition, the program will also feature two of tap’s rising stars:  Michelle Dorrance, whose company Dorrance Dance, took home the 2011 Bessie Award for Outstanding Production, and Caleb Teicher, who also won a 2011 Bessie Award for Outstanding Individual Performance as a dancer in the production that Dorrance won her Bessie for. Gotham Arts Exchange in association with Symphony Space is hosting the family friendly afternoon.
Details:
January 8, 2012 at 3pm
Peter Norton Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway at 95th Street, NYC.
Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at www.symphonyspace.org or by phone at 212-864-5400.  Appropriate for ages 5 and up.

Hands Up!
I think we are missing something on Sesame Street: Lejo! Lejo (lāhō)—a regular on “Sesamstraat” (the Dutch cousin of “Sesame Street”), uses just his hands, an animated soundtrack and simple props to create a vast collection of kooky, quirky and clever characters in this wordless puppetry production. Recommended for ages 3 to 6
Details:
January 18 – 22
Studio 3A/B at the New 42nd Street Studios
Wednesday at 12:30pm, Thursday at 12:30pm, Saturday and Sunday at 10:30am, 12:30pm and 2:30pm
Tickets:
Theater-goers who buy tickets for three or more New Vic shows qualify for free Membership benefits, including up to 35-percent savings with tickets as low as $9.  Full-price tickets for individual productions are as low as $14 each. To purchase tickets online, visit NewVictory.org, and to purchase by phone, call 646-223-3010.  The New Victory Theater box office (209 West 42nd Street) is open Sunday and Monday from 11am-5pm and Tuesday through Saturday from 12pm-7pm.

Rumplestiltskin from the Netherlands
In this artful and eerie rendition of the fairy tale known to Dutch children as Niemand Weet, Niemand Weet… (Nobody Knows, Nobody Knows…), live music, storytelling and drama intertwine to turn this classic story into an enthralling, contemporary play. Recommended for ages 8 to adult
Details:
January 6 – 8
Friday at 7pm, Saturday at 2pm and 7pm, Sunday at 12pm and 5pm
The Duke on 42nd Street
Tickets:
Theater-goers who buy tickets for three or more New Vic shows qualify for free Membership benefits, including up to 35-percent savings with tickets as low as $9.  Full-price tickets for individual productions are as low as $14 each. To purchase tickets online, visit NewVictory.org, and to purchase by phone, call 646-223-3010.  The New Victory Theater box office (209 West 42nd Street) is open Sunday and Monday from 11am-5pm and Tuesday through Saturday from 12pm-7pm.

Parsons Dance at The Joyce Theatre for 2 World Premieres
This is your opportunity to expose your kids to “one of the great movers of modern dance” (The New York Times) and “one of modern dance’s great living dance-makers” (New York Magazine), as David Parsons and Parsons Dance returns to The Joyce Theater mid-month.  The program will include two World Premieres and will also present a family matinee program that features kid-friendly Parsons classics. Both programs include David Parsons’ stroboscopic masterwork Caught.
Details:
The Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue (at 19th Street), NYC.
Tickets range in price from $10-$59. Ticket prices are subject to change. Tickets are available by phone at 212-242-0800 or online at Joyce.org
Performances:
PROGRAM A:
Tue-Wed 7:30pm; Thu-Fri 8pm; Sat 2pm (Jan 21 only) & 8pm; Sun 1pm & 5pm
World Premiere, A Stray’s Lullaby, by Guest Choreographer Kate Skarpetowska, commissioned by The Joyce Theater, Step Into My Dream (excerpt), World Premiere, Round My World by David Parsons, Caught, Swing Shift
PROGRAM B (Family Matinee):
Sat, Jan 14 2pm
Envelope, Hand Dance, Step Into My Dream (excerpt), Slow Dance, Caught, Swing Shift

Miss Ophelia
In this stage adaptation of Ophelia’s Shadow Theatre by Michael Ende (The Neverending Story), two performers use storytelling, puppetry and music to dramatize the tale of Ophelia, an ordinary person, who upon discovering a shadow that “belongs to no one,” experiences something extraordinary.  Miss Ophelia received the Zilveren Krekel Award (Silver Cricket) for ‘most impressive production’.  This honor, as well as the Gouden Krekel Award (Golden Cricket), is provided annually by the Dutch Association of Theatres and Concert Halls VSCD to pay tribute to the creators of youth theater and to express its appreciation for the genre. Recommended for ages 6 to adult
Details:
January 13 – 15
The Duke on 42nd Street
Friday at 7pm, Saturday and Sunday at 12pm and 5pm
Tickets:
Theater-goers who buy tickets for three or more New Vic shows qualify for free Membership benefits, including up to 35-percent savings with tickets as low as $9.  Full-price tickets for individual productions are as low as $14 each. To purchase tickets online, visit NewVictory.org, and to purchase by phone, call 646-223-3010.  The New Victory Theater box office (209 West 42nd Street) is open Sunday and Monday from 11am-5pm and Tuesday through Saturday from 12pm-7pm.

Hot Peas ‘N Butter: On Demand
Hot Peas ‘N Butter seems to be the hot kids band of the moment and the fact that they are one of Target FamilyFun picks will only increase their popularity. Recipients of three Parents’ Choice Awards, the group incorporates elements of Afro-Caribbean rhythms, jazz, R&B, folk, and rock into their music.  With 6 CDs under their belt and a soon-to-be-released book, this high-producing group has a lot of material to perform from. Their videos “Number 1” and “Deep Down” have been seen on both Noggin’s Jack’s Big Music Show and Nickelodeon’s Move to the Music, and can also be found on Noggin’s Videos on Demand.
Details:
Hot Peas ‘N Butter
Sunday, January 29, 2012 at 2pm. Recommended for ages four and up. Tickets: $7. Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts  Walt Whitman Theatre at Brooklyn College  2/5 trains to Brooklyn College/Flatbush Avenue
Online orders: BrooklynCenterOnline.org
Box Office: (718) 951-4500, Tuesday – Saturday, 1pm – 6pm
Groups of 15 or more: (718) 951-5000, ext. 3326

Photo: Joep Lennarts

Wuthering Heights
We have all read about the doomed relationship with Heathcliff and Catherine but what you haven’t seen is the Dutch stage production of it. Winner of the Gouden Krekel Award (Golden Cricket Award) for best Dutch theater production for young audiences in 2010, Wuthering Heights was deemed one of the 10 highlights of the 2009-10 theater season by the Dutch Theatre Festival 2010. Performed on a spare set that evokes the tempestuous nature of the moors, this contemporary stage adaptation exposes the timeless nature and inescapable power of the Emily Brontë classic love story. Recommended for ages 13 to adult
Details:
January 27 – 29
Friday at 7pm, Saturday at 2pm and 7pm, Sunday at 3pm
The New Victory Theater
Tickets:
Theater-goers who buy tickets for three or more New Vic shows qualify for free Membership benefits, including up to 35-percent savings with tickets as low as $9.  Full-price tickets for individual productions are as low as $14 each. To purchase tickets online, visit NewVictory.org, and to purchase by phone, call 646-223-3010.  The New Victory Theater box office (209 West 42nd Street) is open Sunday and Monday from 11am-5pm and Tuesday through Saturday from 12pm-7pm.

Clifford The Big Red Dog- Live!
Clifford has been a favorite dog for 5 generations and now, as his 50th anniversary draws near, a new musical will celebrate this giant, neighborhood dog.  All his friends will be there: Emily Elizabeth, Cleo and T-Bone. The musical has themes of sharing, respect, cooperation, truthfulness, kindness, friendship, and helping others. This brand new production is part of the Target FamilyFun series at Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College.
Details:
Sunday, January 8, 2012 at 2pm
Recommended for ages four and up
Tickets: $10. Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts  Walt Whitman Theatre at Brooklyn College  2/5 trains to Brooklyn College/Flatbush Avenue  On-site paid parking available. Online orders: BrooklynCenterOnline.org Box Office: (718) 951-4500, Tuesday – Saturday, 1pm – 6pm

Magic! The Amazing Max and The Box of Interesting Things
Magician Max Darwin makes objects appear out of thin air, as the laws of physics are defied, and miracles are performed inches from spectators’ faces. This isn’t a show that you ask, “How did he do that?” It’s not that Max doesn’t do great tricks, he does. It’s that the show is so focused on the hijinks of Hamlet the mind-reading pig and the silliness of coins appearing out of every bodily orifice, that the audience doesn’t have time to focus on the head-scratching things Max performs. The magic is just the sideshow to a very entertaining and engaging performance. Our full review is here.
Details:
The Amazing Max and The Box of Interesting Things, in an open-ended Off-Broadway run.
Manhattan Movement & Arts Center
248 W. 60th Street, NYC (between Amsterdam and West End Avenues)
Performances:
Saturdays and Sundays at 4:30pm.
No performances on the following dates: Saturday, December 10; Sunday, December 25; Sunday, January 1. Special mid-week holiday performances have been added at 11am on the following dates: Monday, December 19; Wednesday, December 21; Friday, December 23; Tuesday, December 27; Monday, January 2; and Wednesday, January 4.
Tickets:
The Amazing Max is performed at the MMAC Theater located in the  Magic Carpet Rides (VIP seating) $49.50, regular general admission tickets $29.50. Tickets are available at www.telecharge.com or by phone at 212-239-6200 or 800-432-7250.

Clowns! Circus In A Trunk
Clowning can incorporate so many art forms, especially when done in the European style: music, acrobatics, physical comedy, juggling and pantomine. This Canal Park Playhouse makes use of all of them in their new production that debuts this weekend.  A trio of clowns arrive at the Playhouse ready to watch the circus that never arrives. This enterprising troupe decides to perform the show themselves, literally pulling surprises out an antique trunk. The show is appropriate for ages 3 years and up. It was called ”completely endearing, endlessly entertaining and charming!” bynytheatre.com. The production is part of Canal Park Playhouse’s Classic Brunch Matinee series, audience members can enjoy a selection of items from The Waffle Iron Café, open from 10 AM – 6:30 PM on Saturdays and Sundays for ticket holders only. The menu includes hot-off-the-waffle-iron spinach, mushroom, smoked chicken sausage frittatas; French toast; and of course Traditional Belgian Waffles with pure Vermont maple syrup and butter as well as the house specialty, The Playhouse Pink Waffle (a pink waffle with strawberries and whipped cream). Greek yogurt, granola and fresh fruit are also available. Delish!
Details:
Begins performances on Saturday, January 7 for a limited engagement through Sunday, January 29.
Performances:
The performance schedule is Saturdays and Sundays at 2 PM & 4 PM.
Canal Park Playhouse (508 Canal Street, between Greenwich and West Streets in Tribeca).
Tickets:
The regular ticket price is $20. A pre or post-show Pre Fixe brunch is available for an additional $8 in advance or $10 at the door. For tickets or more information, call OvationTix on 1-866-811-4111 or visit www.canalparkplayhouse.com.

Friday, December 30th – Sunday, January 8th: various times
The Big Apple Circus: Dream Big
The Big Apple Circus at Lincoln Center is back again and we loved it! Grandma Clown (the emcee) is hilarious as she guides you through the Big Apple’s acts and set changes. The thread of the show’s theme, “Dream Big,” begins with a little girl who appears to have been plucked from the audience. She proclaims her desires to be a trapeze performer, which by the end of the show, she does become. Apparently, dreaming big does work! Fabulous international circus artists perform under an intimate tent with varying acts from acrobats to clowns. People seemed to especially respond to the animals, which include horses, dogs, and a porcupine. The acrobats were particularly enthralling to watch as they were jumping around as a human pyramid. The kids were doing acrobatics in their seats during the intermission. This is probably because they could totally relate it to their own experiences on the monkeybars. The show is perfect for ages 2.5 years and up. Both our children were totally engaged by it, and honestly, we were too. Runs Oct 20 – Jan 8.
Details: Tickets start at $15, children under 3 years are free on the lap of a paid adult.