tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12657288.post6889467263226023544..comments2024-01-07T06:59:04.212-05:00Comments on The Playgoer: Taking Kids (and Kids' Theatre) SeriouslyPlaygoerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02994724588504353485noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12657288.post-73995880080867999822008-02-18T22:08:00.000-05:002008-02-18T22:08:00.000-05:00I just wanted to give a shout-out to Free Street T...I just wanted to give a shout-out to Free Street Theater's MadJoy Theatricals, which is one of the most exciting youth-oriented and youth-created theater programs I've encountered in 15 years of arts journalism.<BR/><BR/>These are plays that deal with adolescence, written by adolescents, but that never veer into afterschool-special territory and that show tremendous maturity and sophistication in terms of how narrative is structured, the physical work, use of original music and video, etc. They have toured to several European festivals, but they still seem to be a well-kept secret in American theater. I'm an unabashed fan, so wanted to throw them out there for consideration.<BR/><BR/>KerryAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12657288.post-44406633715261669302008-02-17T01:40:00.000-05:002008-02-17T01:40:00.000-05:00You make an excellent point! As a girl who lives i...You make an excellent point! As a girl who lives in the NY area, it amazes me to see little to no Theatre for Young Audience companies around here. Children and teens are the future of theater, and why can't there be Broadway shows (for instance) about teenagers and children? Prime examples of the past include Annie, and MAYBE The Sound of Music (if we're talking about the children). Spring Awakening is the only example as you said that involves younger people. It is my hope that in the future more shows will involve future younger generations. In fact, I hope younger generations become innovative playwrights. We need fresh material on Broadway; we need to step away from the familar to create new Broadway history! My college has a Theater for Young Audiences class and our theater company this past semester did a Theater for Young Audiences show: "King Stag" which fared very well when they performed it at a local high school. If young audiences go and see more local plays and get more involved, maybe things will even increase just by this. But for now, I guess we'll all just wait and see what happens. This is an excellent post! <BR/><BR/>Sincerely,<BR/>KathleenAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com