Friday, July 20, 2012

Take in a Free Kids' Show While You are in New York

Austen Nash Boone stars in the title role of Theatreworks USA's Skippyjon Jones
Skippyjon Jones begins performances on Tuesday, July 17, 2012 at Off-Broadway's Lucille Lortel Theatre (121 Christopher Street) and continues through Friday, Aug. 17.
Opening night is set for Wednesday, July 25 at 6:30 pm.

Skippyjon Jones wants to be the best Chihuahua ever! The only problem: he's actually a Siamese cat. Before you can say "holy guacamole," Skippyjon's wild imagination transforms him into El Skippito Friskito, the greatest sword fighter in Mexico!  
SKIPPYJON JONES is based on the popular picture book series of the same name by Judy Schachner.

Directed by Peter Flynn (Junie B. Jones, Henry & Mudge) and choreographed by Devanand Janki (Lortel nominee for Junie B. Jones and Henry & Mudge, Callaway nominee for The Yellow Brick Road), Skippyjon Jones features music by Eli Bolin ("Sesame Street") with book and lyrics by Kevin Del Aguila (Drama Desk nominee for Click, Clack, Moo; Altar Boyz).

Austen Nash Boone stars as Skippyjon Jones, Jose Restrepo as Mama Junebug/Polka Dot-ito/Alfredo Buzzito, Veronica Reyes as Jezebel/Poquito Tito, Gabrielle Ruiz as Ju-Ju Bee/Rosalita, and Graham Stevens as Jilly Boo/Don Diego. Melanie Beck and Marcelo Pereira are the understudies.
                                                                                                           
The production features scenic design by Rob Odorisio, costume design by Tracy Christensen (Lortel Award nominee for Seussical), lighting design by Jeff Croiter (Tony Winner for Peter and the Starcatcher) and Corey Pattak, and sound design by Carl Casella (Silence! The Musical). Orchestrations are by Frank Galgano and Matt Castle. Castle also serves as musical director.
Launched in 1989, the mission of Theatreworks USA's Free Summer Theatre Program is to provide New York City youth with their own theatre tradition that not only entertains, but also educates and fosters positive value and an appreciation for theatre.
More than 15,000 FREE tickets will be distributed to Skippyjon Jones this summer. This year's Honorary Chairs for the Free Summer Theatre Program are Tony Award winner Christian Borle, television and film actor Mark Consuelos, Emmy Award-winning television host Kathie Lee Gifford, and Tony Award winner Lin-Manuel Miranda.
TICKETING AND PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
Tickets for SKIPPYJON JONES are FREE and are available on a first-come, first-served basis in-person at the Lucille Lortel Theatre Box Office (121 Christopher Street) on the day of the performance.  

Tickets for each day's performances will be distributed beginning one hour prior to the first performance of the day. There is a limit of four (4) tickets per adult per day.

SKIPPYJON JONES is a 60-minute, one-act musical recommended for children ages four and up. The weekly performance schedule is as follows:

         Monday through Friday -- 10:30 am and 1 pm
         Sunday -- 2 pm and 4:30 pm

SCHEDULE EXCEPTIONS: There are no 1 pm performances July 17-20, no 10:30 am performance on Wednesday, July 25, and no 4:30 pm performance on Sunday, Aug. 5. There are added 6 pm performances on Thursday, Aug. 2 and Thursday, Aug. 16. (No free tickets are available for the opening night benefit, Wednesday July 25 at 6:30 pm.)
Summer camps, youth programs and social service organizations can make reservations for groups of fifteen (15) or more by calling 212-627-7373.

Because Theatreworks USA accepts reservations from summer camps, individual tickets are extremely limited for the weekday daytime performances. Reservations cannot be made by the general public*. Availability is better for evening and weekend shows, which are entirely open to the public. Once all group tickets are distributed, any remaining patrons will be admitted at curtain time on a space-available basis.

For more information, please visit www.twusa.org.

* DON'T WANT TO WAIT IN LINE, BUT STILL WANT TO SEE THE SHOW?

If you want great reserved seats in the orchestra then make a donation to Free Summer Theatre! All donations are 100% tax-deductible and will go directly to offset program costs.For every $50 you donate, you are entitled to one reserved VIP seat for the performance of your choice. Limit 10 tickets per donor. No exchanges or refunds.  For more information, call 212-647-1100 ext. 126 or email development@twusa.org.
 
To purchase Opening Night benefit performance tickets, email events@twusa.org.

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Gracewell Prodiuctions

Gracewell Prodiuctions
Producing Inspiring Works in the Arts
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Our reviews are professional reviews written without a religious bias. At the end of them, you can find a listing of language, content or theological issues that Christians might want to know about when deciding which shows to see.

** Mature indicates that the show has posted an advisory because of content. Usually this means I would recommend no one under the age of 16 attend.

Theater Critic Lauren Yarger

Theater Critic Lauren Yarger

My Bio

Lauren Yarger has written, directed and produced numerous shows and special events for both secular and Christian audiences. She co-wrote a Christian musical version of “A Christmas Carol” which played to sold-out audiences of over 3,000 in Vermont and was awarded the Vermont Bessie (theater and film awards) for “People’s Choice for Theatre.” She also has written two other dinner theaters, sketches for church services and devotions for Christian artists. Her play concept, "From Reel to Real: The Jennifer O'Neill Story" was presented as part of the League of professional Theatre Women's Julia's reading Room Series in New York. Shifting from reviewing to producing, Yarger owns Gracewell Productions, which produced the Table Reading Series at the Palace Theater in Waterbury, CT. She trained for three years in the Broadway League’s Producer Development Program, completed the Commercial Theater Institute's Producing Intensive and other training and produced a one-woman musical about Mary Magdalene that toured nationally and closed with an off-Broadway run. She was a Fellow at the National Critics Institute at the O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, CT. She wrote reviews of Broadway and Off-Broadway theater (the only ones you can find in the US with an added Christian perspective) at http://reflectionsinthelight.blogspot.com/.

She is editor of The Connecticut Arts Connection (http://ctarts.blogspot.com), an award-winning website featuring theater and arts news for the state. She was a contributing editor for BroadwayWorld.com. She previously served as theater reviewer for the Manchester Journal-Inquirer, Connecticut theater editor for CurtainUp.com and as Connecticut and New York reviewer for American Theater Web.

She is a Co-Founder of the Connecticut Chapter of the League of Professional Theatre Women. She is a former vice president and voting member of The Drama Desk.

She is a freelance writer and playwright (member Dramatists Guild of America). She is a member if the The Outer Critics Circle (producer of the annual awards ceremony) and a member of The League of Professional Theatre Women, serving as Co-Founder of the Connecticut Chapter. Yarger was a book reviewer for Publishers Weekly A former newspaper editor and graduate of the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism, Yarger also worked in arts management for the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra and served for nine years as the Executive Director of Masterwork Productions, Inc. She lives with her husband in West Granby, CT. They have two adult children.

Copyright

All material is copyright 2008- 2024 by Lauren Yarger. Reviews and articles may not be reprinted without permission. Contact reflectionsinthelight@gmail.com

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Key to Content Notes:

God's name taken in vain -- means God or Jesus is used in dialogue without speaking directly to or about them.

Language -- means some curse words are used. "Minor" usually means the words are not too strong or that it only occurs once or twice throughout the show.

Strong Language -- means some of the more heavy duty curse words are used.

Nudity -- means a man or woman's backside, a man's lower front or a woman's front are revealed.

Scantily clad -- means actors' private areas are technically covered, but I can see a lot of them.

Sexual Language -- means the dialogue contains sexually explicit language but there's no action.

Sexual Activity -- means a man and woman are performing sexual acts.

Adultery -- Means a married man or woman is involved sexually with someone besides their spouse. If this is depicted with sexual acts on stage, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Sex Outside of Marriage -- means a man and woman are involved sexually without being married. If this is depicted sexually on stage, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Homosexuality -- means this is in the show, but not physically depicted.

Homosexual activity -- means two persons of the same sex are embracing/kissing. If they do more than that, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Cross Dresser -- Means someone is dressing as the opposite sex. If they do more than that on stage the listing would include the corresponding "sexual activity" and/or "homosexual activity" as well.

Cross Gender -- A man is playing a female part or a woman is playing a man's part.

Suggestive Dancing -- means dancing contains sexually suggestive moves.

Derogatory (category added Fall 2012) Language or circumstances where women or people of a certain race are referred to or treated in a negative and demeaning manner.

Other content matters such as torture, suicide, or rape will be noted, with details revealed only as necessary in the review itself.

The term "throughout" added to any of the above means it happens many times throughout the show.

Reviewing Policy

I receive free seats to Broadway and Off-Broadway shows made available to all voting members of the Outer Critics Circle. Journalistically, I provide an unbiased review and am under no obligation to make positive statements. Sometimes shows do not make tickets available to reviewers. If these are shows my readers want to know about I will purchase a ticket. If a personal friend is involved in a production, I'll let you know, but it won't influence a review. If I feel there is a conflict, I won't review their portion of the production.

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