FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, June 26, 2014

Contact: Carin Brastow, Managing Director
Telephone: (215) 496-9160
Email: carin@enchantmenttheatre.org

Breathing life into 4 classic stories onstage across the United States and in classrooms and
community venues across the Philadelphia region

Philadelphia, PA:  Known nationally and internationally for thrilling young audiences with imaginative productions of classic stories that enchant young and old alike, Enchantment Theatre Company is poised to present yet another captivating collection of shows for its 2014-15 season. Today, Enchantment’s Artistic Directors Landis Smith, Jennifer Blatchley Smith and Leslie Reidel revealed the programming that will comprise the 2014-15 season. This October, Crockett Johnson’s beloved tale of “The Adventures of Harold and Purple Crayon” sails across the United States to enchant thousands on our annual National Tour. This December, the timeless fairy tale of Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Snow Queen” transforms Philadelphia’s Arts Bank stage into a winter wonderland. In addition, through the regional touring program Enchantment Everywhere, Enchantment will present two Brothers Grimm tales, “The Fisherman and the Flounder” and “The Brave Little Tailor,” to thousands of children across the Philadelphia region – providing access to high-quality productions to those who have limited access to the arts.

We’re delighted to offer these marvelous tales that celebrate imagination, friendship, family and possibility.  We can’t wait to share these spellbinding theatrical experiences with children and families across the nation and in our hometown of Philadelphia.” says Artistic Director, Landis Smith.

The season opens in October with our National Tour of “The Adventures of Harold and the Purple Crayon.” Children and families across the United States will join Harold (and his magical purple crayon) in an amazing on-stage adventure. Harold is a curious, imaginative and resourceful little boy who creates the worlds he wants to explore, using nothing more than a big purple crayon and his sky’s-the-limit imagination. Adds the Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts, “Harold is pure MAGIC! The brilliant use of projections and seamless transitions from ‘markings’ of the crayon to the elaborate (and very copious) props transforms what could easily have been a theatrical nightmare into a truly remarkable theatrical experience. The Brooklyn Center audience was astounded, as evidenced by the cheers during the final curtain call. Enchantment delivered yet another home run for our family and school audiences!” Visit EnchantmentTheatre.org for information about the Touring Itinerary or contact Barbara Simon at Brad Simon Organization: (212) 730-2132 or barbara@bsoinc.com if you would like to book “Harold.”

In December, just in time for winter, “The Snow Queen” blows into town for our Philadelphia audiences for what The Inquirer simply calls “Holiday Magic.” When a young boy vanishes, his best friend sets out on a magical journey to bring him home. So begins the tale of Gerda who is determined to rescue her beloved friend Kai from the wicked Snow Queen. This fantastic adventure through the land of snow and ice is told with life-size puppets, expressive masks, original music and imaginative theatrical effects and brings this story of a brave young girl to life in a uniquely magical way! Adds the LA Times, “Brave little Gerda’s cry for help against The Snow Queen’s demon guards is eloquently answered with heavenly intervention in the form of a gauzy, graceful puppet. It’s a moment of narrative and visual beauty, one of many that illustrate how aptly this company from Philadelphia is named.” For more information about this production, we invite you to visit EnchantmentTheatre.org.

Throughout the 2014-15 year, Enchantment will tour regionally with their new arts access program, Enchantment Everywhere. These imaginative, professional, portable productions travel to schools, arts venues, parks and retirement communities, literally anywhere there is a community of families and children. Enchantment Everywhere productions ensure that children and families within the region have access to high-quality theatrical productions, regardless of their ability to pay. This past spring, Enchantment toured “The Fisherman and the Flounder” inspired by the Brothers Grimm fairy tale, to 35 schools and over 10,000 children across the Philadelphia region. Because of its popularity, Enchantment will tour “Flounder” this fall throughout the region from September 29-October 11, 2014. In April of 2015, Enchantment will premiere its second Enchantment Everywhere production of “The Brave Little Tailor” by the Brothers Grimm. These magical productions are designed to breathe life into classic literature. They are a perfect introduction to the performing arts while also providing children a creative way to interact with literature. To book “Flounder” or “The Brave Little Tailor” please contact info@enchantmenttheatre.org or call (215) 496-9160.

About Enchantment: Enchantment Theatre Company is a professional non-profit theatre company with a reputation for excellence in both theater and arts education. For more than 35 years, Enchantment has been guided by our mission: to create original theater for young audiences and families. We accomplish this through the imaginative telling of stories that inspire, challenge and enrich our audience, onstage and in the classroom. All of Enchantment’s productions are original adaptations of new and classic fables, myths and legends, set to classical or original music. Our unique style of performance – incorporating expressive masks, life-size puppets, magical illusion, music, dance and pantomime – is accessible to all children, regardless of language barriers and encourages ethnic minorities, whose theatrical participation is among the lowest, to learn and grow through the expressive arts.

Enchantment Theatre Company became a not-for-profit theater in 2000. Since then, we have provided imaginative professional theater performances and in-school arts residency programs for over 150,000 local students through long-term partnerships with the School District of Philadelphia and PA School for the Deaf.  In addition to its arts education work in schools, Enchantment performs a regional holiday production for families and takes one of its major works on the road each year to reach school groups and families in 30-40 states reaching on average 100,000 children each year, totaling more than 1 million since the year 2000.  The presentation venues range from a huge tent at a North Carolina Festival to sophisticated theaters like the Lincoln Center in New York or the Kennedy Center in DC. Enchantment has toured in the Far East six times. We also provide a unique in-front-of-the-orchestra theatrical experience for young people with more than 60 symphony orchestras nationwide and in Canada, including The Philadelphia Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra and Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal. We have been the recipient of major grants from many national and local organizations including the National Endowment for the Arts, the Wyncote Foundation, The Independence Foundation and The Victory Foundation, to name a few. We are a company that retains the founders’ original philosophy that “experiencing live theater is essential for children to thrive.”

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If you would like more information about our season, please contact Carin Brastow, Managing Director at (215) 496-9160 or carin@enchantmenttheatre.org.