| Nancy Churnin: Barn sets the stage for Plano's 'Babe, the Sheep Pig' 05/29/2001 By / The Dallas Morning News
The Plano Repertory Theatre staff doesn't mind if you call their
children's summer playhouse space an old barn.
It is an old barn.
It's the Heritage Farmstead Museum barn in Plano, and they're proud of
it.
"The space is challenging," admits Dustin McGee, 24, of Mesquite, who is
directing Babe, the Sheep Pig there.
The show, which kicks off the company's sixth children's season, opens
today and continues through June 9. Tickets are $5, $4 for PRT
subscribers, Heritage Farmstead members and groups of 10 or more. Call
972-422-7460.
"There are no lights, no curtains or fly system [to move set pieces],"
says Mr. McGee. "On Broadway, you have all this spectacle. But this gets
you back to primal theater where the actor is part of the set."
Mr. McGee says he loves the idea of "making something out of nothing."
He says it's good to show a child that imagination is the main
ingredient you need to have fun. He also believes in the message of
Babe, a story about a pig who escapes the seemingly inevitable fate
of being cooked as a ham by learning how to herd sheep.
"It's about honesty and innocence," Mr. McGee says. "It's about being
alone, making friends and having a goal that seems unattainable and
going out and winning it."
A 2000 graduate of Hardin Simmons University in Abilene and an intern at
Plano Repertory Theatre, Mr. McGee says he's gotten a special charge out
of directing for the younger set.
"I've instructed my actors to go out there and talk to the kids before
and after the show. If I can have one of those actors touch one kid's
life and have them learn to love theater, that's a good thing."
Arts awards
Three graduating seniors from Booker T. Washington High School for the
Performing and Visual Arts are among six Texas teen-age artists selected
as U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts.
That's a record number from one state, says Gena Kuczwanski, programs
officer with the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts.
"It's incredibly remarkable," says Ms. Kuczwanski, who explains that
only 20 Presidential Scholars are chosen. "You have to maintain a
certain grade point average. The artists are evaluated on their artistic
capabilities and their potential for giving back to the community. The
judges look at what the artists have done so far and how he is
integrating his art into society."
The three local honorees are Vernon Gooden, who received an
apprenticeship at the Dallas Black Dance Theatre last year and is
interested in pursuing studies in dance and physical therapy; Daniel
Keene who favors ballet and has been dancing at the Ozsoy School of
Ballet for eight years; and jazz musician Frank LoCrasto, who plays
keyboards.
"Booker T. Washington is a very important school," says Ms. Kuczwanski.
The other Texas winners were actors Michael Moore of Midland and Larry
Wilson of Houston, and Catherine Lees, a painter from Houston.
The scholars will be honored by President Bush on June 27 at the John F.
Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.
Color wars
Green faces used to frighten kids – from the green Wicked Witch of the
West, to green Martians and the green Joker in Batman.
But lately green has producers seeing green, from the grouchy (but
lovable) Grinch to grouchy (but lovable) Shrek.
While Shrek has become a hero, the swan, as in The Trumpet of the Swan
, has turned out to be an ugly duckling at the box office. It has already been
slated for a July 31 video and DVD release. Meanwhile, Shrek the ogre is
setting box office records for an animated film on a nonholiday weekend.
FamiliArts
Anastasia and Highlights for Children take center stage
at FamiliArts, the Jewish Community Center performing arts series that
resumes in October.
The season begins Oct. 21 with The Super Scientific Circus, in which a
clown and a mime teach scientific principles in entertaining ways. It
continues with David Parker, The Pied Piper of Sign, Nov. 11;
Anastasia, a new musical by ArtsPower National Touring Theatre, Dec.
3; The Silly Mixed Up Fairytale, Jan. 13; and Highlights for
Children, a new musical revue, also by ArtsPower, March 3.
All performances begin at 5 p.m. at the Aaron Family Jewish Community
Center, 7900 Northaven Road., Dallas. Tickets are $8 and $7 for JCC
members, with group discounts available. Call 214-739-2737, ext. 215 or
212.
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