Children's theater is no longer just kid's stuff--especially in Hartford, CT.
As the Hartford Children's Theatre (HCT) prepares for the final week of performances of its winter production of the musical "Annie," the 21-year old non-profit organization is also looking forward to an ambitious agenda of highly-polished performances, a broad array of classes and lessons, and a touring program designed to bring quality theater directly into area schools.
Ryan Ratelle, a native of Danielson, CT, joined the company in late 2009 as Artistic Director after a six-year stint as a press agent on Broadway and as a director off-Broadway. He was attracted to the Hartford position in part because he was so impressed by the level of educational outreach efforts regularly conducted by the Hartford Children's Theater throughout the region, under the direction of its Education Director Lisa Foss. At its home at 360 Farmington Avenue in Hartford, the HCT offers a comprehensive schedule of after-school and Saturday drama classes, along with summer and school vacation programs, as well as private conservatory style lesson in acting, voice and music (guitar and piano). Its group classes are offered to different age groups, through a Discovery Company, for students in pre-K to grade 3, a Youth Company, for grades 4-7, and a Teen Company, for grades 8-12.
In addition to hosting student field trips to its mainstage productions and to performances at its 77-seat Carriage House Theatre on its Hartford campus, the Theatre has established a new program called "HCT on the Road," which offers shorter productions initially at its 77-seat Carriage House which are subsequently available to tour schools, under the sponsorship of the schools themselves or the school's PTO, further enhancing HCT's mission of providing access and exposure to high quality theater to young audiences.
One of Ratelle's goals is to increase community awareness of the Hartford Children's Theatre, which he admitted suffers from a somewhat confused image in the public eye. When asked if his organization's mission to create productions are performed by children or to offer productions to be seen by audiences full of children, he responds with an "all of the above." Under Ratelle's leadership, this year's three mainstage productions include a mix of experienced adult talent along with children performers, allowing young people to perform alongside theatrical veterans, while affording young audiences the opportunity to encounter live theater, often for the very first time in their lives.
"We want to emphasize that our shows are for families," Ratelle says. "That's why we have initiated an expanded variety of programming, such as the event this past fall where eight of Hartford's top restaurants provided samples of their best chocolate dishes just before our production of 'Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.' "
The HCT's current mainstage production, which concludes performances the week of January 12-16 in the Hoffman Auditorium at St. Joseph's College in West Hartford, is the popular Lee Adams-Charles Strouse musical ,"Annie," with a cast of adults and children in age-appropriate roles. Ratelle is directing West Hartford's Hollis Long in the title role, with her loyal four-footed companion, Sandy, played by Macy, a rescue dog from Oklahoma trained by noted theatrical animal trainer William Berloni of East Haddam. This production represents a reunion for Hollis and Macy, who previously played their roles in a summer production of "Annie" in southeastern Connecticut. The adults in the cast include community theater veterans and prominent local theater instructors, while the children in the cast are drawn via auditions from through the greater Hartford region.
This Saturday, January 15 at 9 a.m., the Hartford Children's Theatre will host "Annie's Character Breakfast," which will allow families to meet Annie and Sandy's four-footed friends from the Connecticut Humane Society and enjoy a breakfast and a fun craft activity prior to the 10 a.m. performance of "Annie." Families can also pose with Annie and her fellow cast members for photographs. Tickets for the breakfast, which must be purchased separately from the Annie performance, can be obtained by calling the Box Office at 860.249.7970.
While most productions involve "a nice mix of adults and children in the casts," says Ratelle, their next mainstage offering is "a gift to our teenage participants," in the form of the Broadway musical "13," which features an all-teen cast, including musicians, which will run April 29 through May 15 at the Carriage House Theatre.
The company's upcoming "HCT on the Road" production will be "Class Clown," by popular children's author, Joanna Hurwitz, who was commissioned by HCT to adapt her novel for the stage. The work focuses on a rambunctious third-grader who, after his teacher sends a note home to his parents, vows to improve his behavior in class with mixed results. This show will be performed in the Carriage House Theatre from March 11-20 and will be available to tour starting March 21, 2011.
"At a time when many school districts are cutting back on arts programming, our student matinee program is an excellent opportunity to expose students to the transformational power of theater," Ratelle indicates. The weekday performances feature subsidized ticket prices to make it more feasible for schools to send students, he adds.
The HCT provides study guides to teachers for all of its performances to help prepare students for attending the production and to promote group discussion when the students return to the classroom. A study guide typically includes a variety of exercises to help students reflect upon their viewing experience and express themselves through creative writing and other activities. In addition, each student matinee is followed by a 15-minute question and answer session with the cast and crew.
For more information on "Annie," upcoming productions at the Hartford Children's Theatre, and a complete listing of classes and programs, contact the HCT at 860.249.7970 or visit www.hartfordchildrenstheatre.org.
Tickets for "Annie" are $18 for adults and $13 for children (13 years of age and under) and senior citizens and are available by calling the HCT Box Office at 860.249-7970 ext. 12, or via the website. Discounts are available for groups of 15 or more.
Remaining performances of "Annie" are scheduled for Friday, January 14 at 7 p.m., Saturday, January 15 at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., and Sunday January 16 at 2 p.m.
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