Multicultural Folktale Theatre

For the 2013-14 School Year

Each show is 45 minutes long and features TWO 20-25 minute folktales. A 30 minute pre-show workshop/rehearsal for up to 12 "guest stars" from your school/ community is included. The following stories are available June 2013 - May 2014. To schedule a show please send a booking request.

The Bridge and the Dream is a Middle Eastern story that was included in The Arabian Nights, and appears in many variations in countries of that region. This particular version is most similar to the Turkish edition of the tale, which takes place in Istanbul and Cairo. There are also similar stories in other countries around the world – including our hit tale Follow the Buzz from Japan, which is built on the same theme of a poor man having a dream about a treasure and undertaking a long journey to find it.

This story is presented in a vaudevillian style, with characters that would be at home in a Marx Brothers movie, delivering rapid fire gags, zany non-sequiturs, clever wordplay and slapstick. The principal characters are dressed in costumes carefully modeled after period Ottoman (Turkish) clothing. There's even an appearance by a genie in a dream sequence performed in mime to original music. This story also offers optional roles for kids from the audience. Grades: K-6

Tops and Bottoms is our retelling of a Scandinavian version of a tale that has appeared in many different forms and cultures, going all the way back to Aesop. It's a classic example of a trickster tale, with one animal (in this case a fox) outwitting another (in this case a bear) in the choice of which part of a crop to take – the tops or the bottoms.

The bullying Bear insists that the Fox is trespassing on his land, though the Fox has a deed to it. So the sly Fox makes the Bear an offer he can't refuse about how to share the land and the food it produces.

The presentation style for this story is inspired in part by Warner Brothers cartoons, particularly The Road Runner, which in turn is inspired by Native American trickster tales involving the character known as Coyote Trickster. To emphasize the cartoonish nature of this interpretation, we enact some parts of the story in pantomime to music. We also incorporate a great deal of slapstick involving comically exaggerated props. We even include our famous tennis racket stunt, which has been a popular staple of our act for more than a decade. Grades: PreK-3

The Iron Dragon is a relatively recent folktale that originated in California among Chinese railroad workers in
the Nineteenth Century. Based in part on the retelling by Kathleen Chang in the book Iron Moonhunter, this
is a symbolic tale about homesick immigrants honoring and preserving their own heritage while forging a new
life for themselves in America.

With the aid of many hats and some three-dimensional stick figures to help wear them, this story is presented
in a unique performance style that sometimes has the actors switching characters in mid-sentence. It also incorporates
the traditional Chinese arts of tai chi and shadow puppetry. There are even ghosts involved, making The Iron
Dragon a good choice for Halloween. Optional parts available for kids from the audience. Grades: 3-8

Simple Ivan One of the perennial favorites, the Russian story Simple Ivan is one of the classic "noodlehead" stories, which feature young simpletons committing hilarious blunders – and sometimes achieving wisdom in the end. Many tales are told about Ivan, which is the Russian equivalent of John. In English-language noodlehead stories, the character is often named John, Johnny or Jack; and there are Hispanic stories about Juan Bobo (John the Fool).

Ivan's amusing misadventures result from his attempts to follow his mother's advice, doing the right thing at the wrong time – much to the annoyance of the peasants and villagers he encounters, and the delight of the audiences who encounter him.

Since the story depends largely on broad physical activity, the story is presented in pantomime set to music, with opportunities for audience members to be guest stars. Grades: 1-8

The Hat Seller and the Monkey is a tale that has been told in many cultures, though the version we prefer has been traced to Mali in Africa. (The story was popularized by the book Caps for Sale.) The story is presented entirely in pantomime to original music, making it ideal for audiences that may not speak English.

The Hat Seller gets lost in the jungle and decides to take a nap. The mischievous Monkey steals all his hats, and won't give them back. The Hat Seller tries several approaches in dealing with the monkey, but the monkey just mimics everything he does. Then the Hat Seller has a serendipity about how to get his hats back successfully.

This story makes use of many fun props and a great deal of slapstick. Grades: PreK-4

Two additional stories will be available in September 2013.