Stage Door News
Stage Door News
Toronto, February 18th, 2014 - Lynda Hill, Artistic Director of Theatre Direct, a leading creator and innovator in theatre for young audiences, has announced plans to launch a theatre festival entirely dedicated to engaging the very youngest of their young audiences - children 0 -6 years!
From May 12 -19, 2014, The WeeFestival will showcase small-scale productions in four venues by leading artists specializing in theatre for the very young from Italy, Spain, Portugal, Germany and Quebec, and Ontario.
Whether it is a stimulating journey through colours and the senses performed for babies and toddlers (In Black & White a Yellow Line-Teatro do Biombo, Portugal), a playful procrastination for toddlers (Bedtime-Theatre Katarsis, Spain), or a rambunctious romp through world of plastic bag creatures for kindergarteners (Plastique-Puzzle Theatre-Bulgaria/Quebec), each show has been created with the emotional and social developmental needs and interests of young children.
Other featured productions for under 5’s include H2O, a breathtaking performance installation from Germany’s Helios Theatre, the English premiers of The Boat and the Moon from La Baracca Testoni Ragazzi, Italy and Flots ce qui Brille Voit/Waves, All that Glows, Sees an enchanting encounter with the beauty of the sea from Théâtre des Confettis. Finally, Theatre Direct proudly showcases its own contribution to the international line-up with the premier of Old Man and the River, a new puppetry work for ages 3-5, created by Lynda Hill and Thomas Morgan Jones.
In addition to engaging theatre productions, the festival will offer a range of multi-disciplinary programming designed to engage little ones and their parents including music, dance, and literary events over the long weekend. Other activities include workshops and roundtables for parents, educators and artists throughout the week.
The theme of water flows throughout many of the pieces in the Festival as do the festival performance venues follow the course of Toronto’s Taddle Creek. They include Tarragon Theatre’s Extra Space and studios, the new cultural centre at the Alliance Française, the Helen Gardiner Phelan Theatre and the Artscape Wychwood Barns, home of Theatre Direct’s Wychwood Theatre. Additional venues hosting festival activities will be announced later.
Children from local daycares, preschools and kindergartens surrounding the venues will attend performances over the week from May 12 -15 with public performances for families take place over the Victoria Day long weekend from May 16 -18.
The Festival will close May 19th with a full day of activities for the whole community throughout the Artscape Wychwood Barns and surrounding park. Special events will include Ubuntu/All Together, a family dance celebration led by Lua Sheyanne, a literary picnic in a Garden of Reading featuring guest children’s authors, and The Festival Stage featuring some of Toronto’s top music and dance artists.
Over the week, academic researchers, educators, arts funders, policy makers, artists, producers and presenters will engage in discussion around the practical and theoretical aspects of theatre and arts for early years. Conference hosts and sponsors include The University of Toronto and The Centre for Drama Studies, Tarragon Theatre and the Ontario Arts Council.
The conference Keynote address will be delivered by Valeria Frabetti, artistic director of La Baracca Testoni Ragazzi, the theatre spearheading the European Small Size Network and the creation of the Charter of Children’s Right to Arts and Culture.
Lynda Hill, artistic Director of Theatre Direct says: “The WeeFestival emerges directly from our mandate, mission and core beliefs as a company which state: “Our work is driven by a belief that young people deserve truth not diversion, that they have a cultural right to meaningful content and compelling, relevant theatre. We view our audience as thinking, feeling, complex individuals, not as a market. Our future audiences and our present audience need and demand theatre that engages all their faculties and feelings.”
With growing awareness as to the importance of providing the best start for children in their early years this festival is a reflection of our firm assertion that artistic and cultural experiences should be an essential part of any early years strategy. We are excited to share these beautiful and engaging performances lovingly created especially for the very young!”
Theatre Direct is pleased to have the generous support of the following cultural partners as co-presenters, Alliance Française de Toronto for Puzzle Théâtre’s production of Plastique; Istituto Italiano di Cultura for La Baracca Testoni Ragazzi’s production of The Boat and the Moon; and CAMÕES,I.P. Consulado de Portugal for Teatro do Biombo’s production of In Black and White, a Yellow Line which is further supported by SATA Airlines.
The WeeFestival’s conference sponsors are The University of Toronto and The Centre for Drama Studies and Tarragon Theatre.
Theatre Direct is grateful for the support of the Department of Canadian Heritage and the Arts Presentation Canada program for the generous support of this inaugural festival.*
Additional arts funding to Theatre Direct is received from our Government Arts Councils: The Ontario Arts Council, The Canada Council, the Toronto Arts Council, and our annual corporate supporters TD Bank Financial Group and CIBC Children’s Foundation.
Go to www.theatredirect.ca for a list of WeeFestival productions. A festival website www.weefestival.ca will be live as of March 6, 2014.
Tickets for the Festival will be available as of March 17th, 2014 through www.weefestival.ca.
FESTIVAL TICKETS
$10 (inc HST) for daycares, nurseries, preschools and kindergartens
$12 (inc HST) discounted for students/artists/delegates
$14 (inc HST) for public performances
Photo: Bedtime. ©2012 Theatre Katarsis, (Spain).
2014-02-18
Toronto: Theatre Direct inaugurates the WeeFestival of Theatre and Culture May 12-19