Wang Center Announces
2004-2004 Family Series

From Huck Finn to a Little Prince, a Frog, a Toad, aerialists and acrobats, The Wang Center for the Performing Arts will welcome some of literature’s most well loved children’s characters when it inaugurates a new Family Series beginning in November 2004.

Josiah A. Spaulding, Jr., President and CEO of The Wang Center for the Performing Arts, recently announced details of the 2005 Family Series which will include four productions presented at The Wang and Shubert Theatres.

Meeting with the press at The Shubert Theatre, Spaulding commented, “The Wang Center is committed to bringing top-notch entertainment to our audiences and with the Family Series, we’ll be able to present unique, high-quality programming that everyone in a family – from the kids to the adults – can enjoy. We are grateful to the Poduska Family Foundation for their support of the Family Series.”

The Family Series kicks off with “Big River, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” playing The Wang Theatre from November 16-21. With music and lyrics by Grammy-award winner Roger Miller, “Big River” is unique in that the cast includes deaf, hard-of-hearing and hearing actors performing each role in a synchronized ballet of speaking and signing. Spoken English and American Sign Language (ASL) are interwoven with music, dance, and storytelling techniques from both hearing and deaf cultures into a “third language” creating a unique theatrical event. The eclectic score is a mix of cajun, gospel, folk, country and blues songs.

The winner of six L.A. Ovation Awards and five L.A. Drama Critics’ Circle Awards, including Best Musical from both, “Big River” is set in 1840’s rural America and follows the exploits of the irrepressible Huck and his friend Jim, a runaway slave, as they explore life along the mighty Mississippi River.

The well-loved characters of Arnold Lobel will be hopping from the page to the stage in “A Year With Frog and Toad,” the critically acclaimed Broadway musical that was nominated for three 2003 Tony awards. Playing January 12-16, 2005, at The Shubert Theatre, “A Year With Frog and Toad” remains true to the spirit of the original stories as it follows two great friends, the cheerful and popular Frog and the rather grumpy Toad through four fun-filled seasons. Waking from hibernation in the spring, they proceed to plant gardens, swim, rake leaves and go sledding, learning life lessons along the way, including a most important one about friendship and rejoicing in the attributes that make each of us different and special.

A co-production of Boston Lyric Opera and The Wang Center for the Performing Arts, “The Little Prince” makes its East Coast premiere at The Shubert Theatre, February 16-27, 2005. Based on one of the most read books of all times, The Little Prince by Antoine Saint-Exupéry, the opera brings to life the tender and enlightening story cherished by generations of children and adults throughout the world.

“The Little Prince” tells the story of a pilot who finds himself stranded in the Sahara desert as a result of engine failure and is forced to crash land in the desert miles away from any habitation and chance of help. He meets the Little Prince, who teaches the Pilot to look at life through the eyes of a child and to discover the wonders of the world that the eyes can’t see. “The Little Prince” opened to rave reviews at Houston Grand Opera in May of 2003.

A circus fantasy of strength, spectacle and wonder, “Cirque Dreams” will play The Shubert Theatre from March 15-20, 2005. In the spirit of the enormously successful Cirque Ingenieux comes the latest creation from Cirque Productions conceived and directed by Neil Goldberg.

An original and imaginative burst of color, costumes and amazing performance artistry, “Cirque Dreams” features an international cast - from inventive acrobats and loose-limbed contortionists to sweeping chiffon-draped aerialists and mighty men of strength. An exhilarating 90-minute, two-act performance, “Cirque Dreams” combines inventive acrobatics, costuming, choreography and music with striking visual effects.

Tickets for all four productions in the series will go on sale first to Wang Family Members in early May. Family Members will enjoy benefits, including priority seating, ticket discounts, study guides, invitations to private receptions, and question and answer sessions following each production.

For more information, including a detailed brochure, contact The Wang Center at 617-482-9393 or visit .www.wangcenter.org.

-- OnStage Boston

3/18/04