CONTACT Tim Dunn (714) 556-2122 x4209, TDunn@SCFTA.org Laura Lanzi (714) 556-2122 x4371, Llanzi@SCFTA.org Images: SCFTA.org/media RELEASE DATE: Segerstrom Center for the Arts Annnounces 2018 2019 Family Series Doktor Kaboom! Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam Band Shadow Play The Very Hungry Caterpillar Emily Brown and the Thing They Called Her Vivaldi Sunjata Kamalenya Roald Dahl s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory COSTA MESA, CA Segerstrom Center for the Arts fun-packed 2018 2019 Family Series is guaranteed to entertain, inspire and just be a whole lot of fun! Many of these internationally renowned theater companies are returning by popular demand with new shows and casts of characters. New this year is a concert by the Latin Grammy Award-winning indie pop-rock Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam Band. The Discovery Series is perfect for children ages 4 8 and the Explorer Series has been designed for children ages 7 and older. (But kids of all ages and their parents too will have a blast.) Each show is an adventure in storytelling, creativity and theatrical magic that will pique young imaginations and engage families with marvelous tales from around the world. Each performance also features free pre-show family activities. All performances will be in Segerstrom Center s except Roald Dahl s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which will be in Segerstrom Hall. The performance of Shadow Play on November 17, 2018 at 10 a.m. and of The Very Hungry Caterpillar & Other Eric Carle Favorites on February 2, 2019 at 10 a.m. are sensory-friendly performances designed specifically so families with children with sensory sensitivity can share the magic and amazement of live performances. These performances may be purchased together as a separate subscription. All engagements will offer sign-language interpretation at one performance to assist the deaf and hard-ofhearing. Subscriptions prices: Explorer Series Subscriptions: $52 Discover Series Subscriptions: $80 Sensory-Friendly Subscriptions: $32 (Shadow Play, November 17 and The Very Hungry Caterpillar & Other Eric Carle Favorites, February 2) Current and new Family Series season subscriptions are available now. Single tickets will go on sale approximately eight weeks prior to individual engagements. Visit the Center s website, www.scfta.org for more information about the 2018-2019 Season. For inquiries about group ticket discounts, call the Group Services office at (714) 755-0236.
2018 2019 Family Series Announcement NEWS 2/6 2018 2019 FAMILY SERIES Doktor Kaboom! Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam Band Shadow Play The Very Hungry Caterpillar Emily Brown and the Thing They Called Her Vivaldi Sunjata Kamalenya Roald Dahl s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory DISCOVERY SERIES For families and children ages 4 8 DOKTOR KABOOM AND THE WHEEL OF SCIENCE CENTER PREMIERE September 15 & 16, 2018 This show is what you want live children s theatre to be! Broadwayworld.com Doktor Kaboom is back! He s having trouble picking his favorite science demonstrations, so he s bringing them all! Unfortunately, there are way too many to do them all in one show. The solution? The Wheel of Science!! Doktor Kaboom has built a great big spinning wheel and labeled it with 12 fantastic demonstrations - everything from optical illusions to chemical reactions to a homemade hovercraft. So - wherever the wheel stops is where the show really begins! Science and performance have always been actor/comedian David Epley s (AKA Doktor Kaboom) passions. With the wizardry of a scientist and the creativity of an artist, he has almost magically concocted the perfect entertainment and educational potion for children. About.com calls the show one of the most innovative science presentations that I ve ever seen. LUCKY DIAZ AND THE FAMILY JAM BAND CENTER PREMIERE October 6 & 7, 2018 It will take you all of about 15 minutes to become a fan of Lucky Diaz. Zooglobble.com Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam Band is on the pulse of all things kid s music and brings smart, crafty lyrics with irresistibly fresh pop beats. They create indie music sounds that are rooted in their whimsical child-friendly imaginations. The songs offer a musical and topical range aimed at exploring all of the wonder and joy of a young person s life. Lucky Diaz and Alisha Gaddis, a married couple, have been named THE face of kindie music by the Washington Post, SUPERSTARS by Red Tricycle, The Rolling Stones of Kids Music by the Style Network, and PEOPLE Magazine called their album the #1 in COOLEST kids music! The band has been featured on NPR, All Things Considered, three-time Emmy Nominees and winners and two-time Latin Grammy nominees and winners! In fact, Lucky and the band have been crowned the very first Americans to ever win a Latin Grammy in the children s album category. SHADOW PLAY CENTER PREMIERE November 17 & 18, 2018 (November 17 is sensory-friendly) Blur[ring] the boundaries between the imagined and the real. - The New York Times
2018 2019 Family Series Announcement NEWS 3/6 Where does your shadow go when you go to sleep? As it turns out, some shadows are quite mischievous. Soon after moving into his new home, Flash discovers that his shadow has moving plans of its own. Shadow Play follows Flash s quest to bring his shadow home in this playful, multi-media production that features stunning animation, video production and an original score. Children are encouraged to participate and interact with the performers and to help Flash along the way. Shadow Play was developed as part of a residency at The Performance Project @ University Settlement. Trusty Sidekick Theater Company artists led development workshops with student ages 2-5 in the Settlement s early education program. Through a series of creative play and story development workshops led by a team of teaching artists, the students offered their ideas about the nature of shadows and acted as dramaturgs, informing the devising process of the artists as they created the show. THE VERY HUNGRY CATERPILLAR & OTHER ERIC CARLE FAVORITES February 2 & 3, 2019 (February 2 is sensory-friendly) the experience was utterly charming The Montreal Gazette Three beloved stories by award-winning children s book illustrator and author Eric Carle come to life on stage, using the magic of black light and fanciful puppets: The Very Hungry Caterpillar is the wonderful adventure of a very tiny and very hungry caterpillar as he eats his way through an amazing variety of foods on his path to becoming a beautiful butterfly. Little Cloud, way high in the sky, playfully transforms himself into various creatures, including a sheep, an airplane, a shark and more! The Mixed-Up Chameleon is bored with his life, sitting about predictably changing color all day. Following an adventure at the zoo, he attempts to emulate the beautiful animals he saw there before coming to the conclusion that it s quite fine being his unique self. The Center is happy to welcome Mermaid Theatre back. From Nova Scotia, the company has been entertaining and touching the lives of children around the world since 1972. EMILY BROWN AND THE THING CENTER PREMIERE March 30 & 31, 2019 A brilliant show: funny, touching and completely satisfying. Edinburgh Guide One evening, Emily Brown and Stanley, her old grey rabbit, hear a Thing crying outside their window. The poor Thing can t get to sleep. So Emily and Stanley set off on incredible adventures to the Dark and Scary Wood, the Whirling Wastes and beyond to find the Thing s cuddly, his bedtime milk and his medicine. Nothing seems to help, though. What s really troubling the Thing and will he ever get to sleep? This magical, musical show based on the beloved book by Cressida Cowell (How to Train Your Dragon) touches on well-known feelings about fear, bravery and adventure. Tall Stories theater company brings great stories to life. It is internationally recognized for its exciting blend of storytelling, original music and lots of laughs. The company has traveled from Cornwall to Aberdeen and from New York to Sydney.
2018 2019 Family Series Announcement NEWS 4/6 EXPLORER SERIES For families and children ages 7 and older THEY CALLED HER VIVALDI CENTER PREMIERE February 16 & 17, 2019 They Called Her Vivaldi offers escapism through storytelling and incredible sonic effects. Sunday Business Post Cecilia Maria is a sensitive musical prodigy, making a quiet name for herself in a cacophonous world. One night, her magical musical hat is stolen. And then the adventure is on: she must venture into the noisy city to track down the mysterious cat burglar. Along the way, she meets a pizza maker with no salt, a gondolier without an oar and a hairdresser who doesn t own a pair of scissors. Eventually Cecilia meets the thief face to face and a startling truth about herself. Part comedy, part thriller, They Called Her Vivaldi is full of beautiful music and hilarious characters, celebrating the power within us and encouraging all of us to follow our dreams. Theatre Lovett is one of Ireland s leading companies producing work for family audiences, works that engage, entertain and inspire. The company has performed internationally since it was founded in 2010. SUNJATA KAMALENYA CENTER PREMIERE March 9 & 10, 2019 From the company who brought us last year s Journey to Oz, Experiential Theater Company presents Sunjata Kamalenya. A wandering hunter comes to the village of Farrakoro and predicts that a crippled boy and his outcast mother will overcome all odds and deliver their nation from a powerful warlord. Based on the true story that inspired The Lion King, Sunjata (Youth) is an interactive production that celebrates the greatest hero of West African legend, Sunjata Keita, the first mansa (king) of the ancient Empire of Mali. Authentic music, costumes and scenery create a modern Mandé village where the jelimujso (storyteller) guides your journey as you sing, dance and act alongside the actors and musicians. When the audience enters any theater to see an Experiential Theater company production, they soon find out that they are there to be in a play. They are transported into a different world and are invited to participate in the creation of an artistic performance. Roald Dahl s CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY CENTER PREMIERE June 9, 2019 Segerstrom Hall IT WILL RENEW YOUR FAITH IN THE AMERICAN DREAM Huffington Post Roald Dahl's amazing tale is the perfect recipe for a delectable treat: songs from the original film, including "Pure Imagination," "The Candy Man" and "I've Got a Golden Ticket," alongside a toe-tapping and ear-tickling new score from the songwriters of Hairspray. Willy Wonka is opening his marvelous and mysterious chocolate factory...to a lucky few. That includes Charlie Bucket, whose bland life is about to burst with color and confection beyond his wildest dreams. He and four other Golden Ticket winners will embark on a mesmerizing joyride through a world of pure imagination. Now's your chance to experience
2018 2019 Family Series Announcement NEWS 5/6 the wonders of Wonka like never before get ready for Oompa-Loompas, incredible inventions, the great glass elevator and more, more, more in this everlasting showstopper! Information provided is accurate at the time of printing, but is subject to change. Segerstrom Center for the Arts is a private, non-profit organization. Segerstrom Center for the Arts is a registered trademark. Segerstrom Center for the Arts applauds its corporate partners including Kia Motors America, Official Automotive Partner; United Airlines, Official Airline; and Omaha Steaks International, Official Fine Food Retailer. Segerstrom Center for the Arts is an acclaimed arts institution as well as a beautiful multi-disciplinary cultural campus. It is committed to supporting artistic excellence, offering unsurpassed experiences and to engaging the entire community in new and exciting ways through the unique power of live performance and a diverse array of inspiring arts-based education and community engagement programs. Previously called the Orange County Performing Arts Center, Segerstrom Center is Orange County s largest non-profit arts organization. In addition to its six performance venues, Segerstrom Center is also home to the American Ballet Theatre William J. Gillespie School. The Center presents a broad range of programming for audiences of all ages, including international ballet and dance, national tours of top Broadway shows, jazz and cabaret, contemporary artists, classical music performed by renowned chamber orchestras and ensembles, family-friendly programming, free performances open to the public from outdoor movie screenings to dancing on the plaza and many other special events. Segerstrom Center is a leader among the nation s performing arts centers for providing education programs designed to inspire young people through the arts. The Center s programs reach hundreds of thousands of students each year in five Southern California counties. Community engagement programs developed through the Center for Dance and Innovation and Center Without Boundaries also connect the Center more comprehensively with Orange County s many diverse communities. The CDI supports flagship artistic programming and a wide range of projects that celebrate innovation, nurture creativity and engage audiences of the future. It is home to the ABT Gillespie School and the School of Dance and Music for Children with Disabilities. The Center Without Boundaries develops partnerships with noncultural organizations to help them in their own efforts to respond the ever-changing needs of the community. Segerstrom Center for the Arts is also proud to serve as the artistic home to three of the region s major performing arts organizations: Pacific Symphony, Philharmonic Society of Orange County and Pacific Chorale, who contribute greatly to the artistic life of the region with annual seasons performed at Segerstrom Center for the Arts.
2018 2019 Family Series Announcement NEWS 6/6 In addition to Segerstrom Center for the Arts as a presenting and producing institution, it also identifies the beautiful 14-acre campus that embraces the Center s own facilities as well as two independently acclaimed organizations: Tony Award -winning South Coast Repertory and a site designated as the future home of the Orange County Museum of Art. 2018-2019 FAMILY SERIES DISCOVERY SERIES Doktor Kaboom & the Wheel of Science September 15 & 16, 2018 Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam Band October 6 & 7, 2018 Shadow Play November 17 & 18, 2018 The Very Hungry Caterpillar & Other Eric Carle Favorites February 2 & 3, 2019 Emily Brown and the Thing March 30 & 31, 2019 EXPLORER SERIES They Called Her Vivaldi February 16 & 17, 2019 Sunjata Kamelenya March 9 & 10, 2019 Roald Dahl s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory June 9, 2019 In person - The Box Office 600 Town Center Drive Costa Mesa, CA 92626 Open 10 a.m. 6 p.m. daily Online - SCFTA.org Phone - (714) 556-2787 Open 10 a.m. 6 p.m. daily Group Sales - (714) 755-0236 # # #