For children who are used to TiVo-ed television shows, DVD players in cars, and watching movies on their parents’ iPhones, there’s something particularly captivating about live theater. The lights go down; the audience is silent; and a performance that cannot be paused for a snack or potty break begins. Of course, most plays are not intended for children. They are too long, too confusing or too mature – see my discussion of the repeated use of the f-bomb in “Billy Elliot” for an example of the latter. That’s where children’s theater comes in.
Children’s theaters design productions specifically for young audiences. The performances are short, lively – with audience participation encouraged – and deal with familiar stories or themes. Attending a good children’s theater can be the first step to creating an enthusiastic, engaged arts lover. In Chicago, we are fortunate to have the Emerald City Theatre, a top-notch children’s theater that develops exciting, original productions for kids and families. Ten of thousands of people see Emerald City productions in its north side theater every year, and Emerald City reaches even more kids by taking its shows on the road, including free or discounted performances for organizations serving low-income families.
Recently, my husband and I took our two kids to see Emerald City’s production of “Peter Pan.” Zuzu is a theater-going veteran, including two previous Emerald City productions, but this was J.R.’s first play, and for good reason. J.R. is one of those boys who doesn’t stop moving. Frankly, we have difficulty getting him to sit still long enough to eat. A recent attempt to take J.R. to his first movie was not what you might call a success. So, although “Peter Pan” was billed for ages three and up, the expectations for our three year old’s behavior were low.
I am pleased to report that J.R. made it through the entire 60-minute performance with only minor squirming. He was actually glued to his seat for the first 30 minutes, which may be a new record. He laughed at the physical comedy and held his breath during the sword fights. He started to lose it a bit towards the end, but it never got so bad that we had to take him outside – a possibility for which we are always prepared. While he clearly did not understand the whole story, our post-show discussion revealed that he had a handle on who each of the major characters were. Perhaps not surprisingly, the ticking crocodile was his runaway favorite. Also not surprisingly, our Zuzu was utterly riveted the whole time, laughing uproariously at Captain Hook and Mr. Smee’s antics and shouting out many helpful suggestions to the characters.
Getting autographs after the show
Is the Emerald City production of “Peter Pan” on par with Brian Dennehy doing Eugene O’Neill at the Goodman? Not quite. The acting can be a bit hammy and production values are not particularly high. But then again, the ticket prices are low, which for a family outing is key. More importantly, the show is sweet; it is funny and it is readily accessible to young children. This is exactly what you need from a children’s theater. The goal here is to convince kids that they enjoy going to the theater, that plays are fun. So that when those kids grow up, they will be the kind of people who voluntarily go see the latest revival of “The Iceman Cometh.”
Would any of my local readers like to see “Peter Pan” for themselves? Emerald City Theatre has generously offered to give a Family 4-pack of tickets to a lucky “West of the Loop” reader. To enter, simply leave a comment to this post describing a favorite theater-going experience with or without your kids by midnight on Wednesday June 23. I will select a winner at random. “Peter Pan” is running through July 22 so there is still plenty of time to see it, whether you win the tickets or not!
Emerald City Theatre’s production of “Peter Pan” is running through July 22 at the Apollo Theater at 2540 N. Lincoln Ave. on Chicago’s north side. The show lasts approximately 60 minutes. There are performances on Tuesday through Thursday, as well as Saturday and Sunday. Children are invited to meet the actors following the weekend shows. Go to www.emeraldcitytheatre.com for more information.
Full disclosure time: I was given four complimentary tickets to “Peter Pan’s Ice Cream Adventure” a special production of the play followed by an ice cream treat and a chance to meet the actors. I was not asked to write about the play and all opinions expressed in this review are my own.
I first saw “Peter Pan” at Vassar College when I was a little girl. We lived nearby, and went for an outdoor evening performance. The moment when Peter asked us to clap if we believed is one I will never forget. It was sheer magic.
Last summer we took then four year old Henry to see “Brigadoon” at the College Light Opera in Falmouth, MA — he loved every minute of the full production (we went to a matinee).
I love children’s theater!
If my name is drawn, please draw again or donate the tickets to a worthy family.
Great children’s theater memories, Mrs. Terry!
My 4 yr old grandson has never been to a theater production and it’s been so long for me that I can’t even remember what it was I last saw. I would love to take a trip into the “big” city and expose the young man to a little culture.
I am sorry you didn’t win. I hope you can still take your grandson. The ticket prices are very reasonable, which is a good thing, considering you never know how kids will react!
The first theater production I took my daughter to was Willie Wonka. She had no idea what a play was and when the lights when down and the actors came out and stared the play, she didn’t move for the next 60 minutes. She truly thought she was seeing something so magical. It was one of my favorite moments as a parent. We’ve only been at one other show since but look forward to the many ahead.
I now have her enrolled in pre-drama and she loves it – we have the theater to thank for that!
Emerald Theatre is actually doing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory next season!
I’ve been wanting to take my kids to see this. It sounds fantastic! My daughter has recently been asking about drama and acting (could that have anything to do with her “drama queen” moments)! Anyway, seeing a production now would be great for her and they LOVE Peter Pan!
Zuzu loves acting too. I think she’s a natural. Definitely check out Emerald City sometime. They are doing “Pinkalicious” next season — I can see our girls getting into that one!
I love theater and fully credit that to my dad. My parents were divorced but my dad loved theater and on divorce parent day (aka sunday afternoons) we used to go into the city to see the latest show. My dad would get tickets from Philly the Thief (the over priced ticket broker) (No waiting on the TKTS line for him!) and we would head in. From an early age I saw shows such as Chorus Line (my all time favorite and quite possibly the reason I love dance so much), Les Mis, Phantom, Cats and of course, the marvelous Jerome Robbins on Broadway which included snippets from Peter Pan complete with Peter (who incidentally was played by a women) swinging out upon a wire across the audience. Between that and the chandelier falling on the audience Phantom I was hooked. I too have a rather “busy” 3 year old but it is my immense hope to expose her to theater soon in the hopes that she will appreciate and love it like I do and has the same wonderful memories of me when she is older that I have of my father. And more importantly, for a Chicago transplant, thanks for telling me about a Kid friendly theater! How helpful!
J would love Emerald City; I hope you check it out even though you didn’t win.
Great comment though. Its only a matter of time before you start blogging…
thanks for the review! we love theatre, too…i spent every summer of my childhood at theatre camp.
sam has already been in robin hood, mulan and high school musical. one of myles favorite books is peter pan…i will definitely take the kids to see this…thanks again, emily!!!
I hope you guys get to go see it!
my kids would love the opportunity to go to the theatre. i much prefer that to tv or movies. this sounds like a great production for the kids.
i loved going to see les miserables for the first time. we had nosebleed seats but it was so powerful and captivating…
You won! Congrats! If you could email me your full name and an email address, I will pass the info along to Stacy Coyne, the marketing manager at Emerald City Theatre and she will get in touch with you.