The Penn State Greater Allegheny Players will be presenting a Children's Theatre production of ?Eastern European Tales,? as part of the Teaching International Project. There will be a special PEPP (Penn State Educational Partnership Program) preview show at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 30, in the new Fitness and Cultural Center. Subsequent performances at the Fitness and Cultural Center will be held at 12:15 p.m. on Dec. 2, and at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 3 and 4.
The production will include the following three stories, adapted for children?s theater:
- "The Magic Doctor," adapted from the retelling by Val Biro in Humgarian Folk-Tales, Oxford University Press, 1980;
- "Baba Yaga, a Russian Tale," adapted from the retelling by Linda Jennings in "A Treasury of Stories from Around the World," Kingfisher Books, 1993; and
- "The Dragon of Krakow," adapted from the retelling by Richard Monte in "The Dragon of Krakow and Other Polish Stories," Francis Lincoln Children?s Books, 2008.
In this style of theater production, there are no props, no costumes and no sets. The actors, wearing T-shirts and jeans, mime the props and become the scenery -- as well as playing the characters and functioning as narrators in the stories. Audience members are encouraged to join their imaginations with the cast to create the mise en scene -- the picture of what is happening on the stage.
Adaptations for the Children?s Theatre production were made by Caroline Burke, Carolyn Edwards, and Jay Breckenridge, professor of theatre arts. The production is directed by Breckenridge.