Children's Theater

One of Marin County's most beloved and unique events is the famous Mountain Play—an outdoor theater experience high on the slopes of Mt. Tamalpais that's been going strong for a century! This year's 100th-anniversary Mountain Play production is Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music, the unforgettable story of spirited young governess Maria Rainer, Captain von Trapp and his seven children, and Austria on the eve of the Nazi takeover.

Featuring classic songs like Do-Re-Mi, Edelweiss, and My Favorite Things, the Mountain Play's production of The Sound of Music is directed by Jay Manley, and features Heather Buck as Maria, Ryan Drummond as Georg von Trapp, and Susan Zelinsky (Marin Paroo in last year's production of The Music Man) as Else Schraeder. Musical direction is by Mountain Play veteran Debra Chambliss.

Performances take place at 2 pm at Mt. Tam's Cushing Memorial Amphitheater on May 19 and 26, and June 2, 8, 9, and 16. General seating ticket prices range from $20–$40., and children 3 and under are free. Reserved seats are available for Mountain Play Fan Club members (starting at $56); higher membership levels include perks like reserved parking and special shuttle passes. Order tickets online here or by phone at (415) 383-1100.

My kids have always loved the books by children's author Mo Willems, especially his Knuffle Bunny series, so we were all excited to see the new Bay Area Children's Theatre production of Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley.

This high-energy, fast-moving, and funny production expands upon the Knuffle Bunny story but remains true to the book, thanks to the witty song lyrics and script penned by Willems himself.

Knuffle Bunny tells the story of what happens when Dad (Derek Travis Collard) tries to give Mom (Michelle Drexler) a break and takes tricky toddler Trixie (Allison Johnson) and her stuffed animal Knuffle Bunny with him to the laundromat.

Overconfident Dad thinks the trip will go without a hitch, but stressed-out Mom knows otherwise but agrees with the plan anyhow. All goes well until Trixie realizes something is wrong and tries to tell Dad, who can't understand her babble and thinks she just needs her diaper changed.

One of my kids' favorite books is Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale by Mo Willems. On Saturday, this hilarious Caldecott Honor book comes to life on stage in the Bay Area Children's Theatre production of Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical.

In Knuffle Bunny, Dad learns that it can be tricky to do the laundry with toddler daughter Trixie and her beloved stuffed animal, the titular Knuffle Bunny. See washing machines burst into life and clothes dance up a whirlwind at the laundromat in this delightful production that's fun for the whole family.

We've seen several productions from Bay Area Children's Theatre, and they never disappoint! It's definitely worth the trip over to Berkeley, and the Freight & Salvage is a wonderful intimate venue in which to see a show like this.

The opening performance of Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical takes place at the Freight & Salvage on Saturday, April 13, 2013 at 2 pm. The show plays Saturdays at 2 pm and Sundays at 11 am and 2 pm through May 5.

The fun and fantastic Ivy + Bean: The Musical is coming to Marin Theatre Company in Mill Valley! Produced by Bay Area Children's Theater, Ivy + Bean: The Musical is a fun and faithful adaptation of the first book in the New York Times-best-selling series about two second graders, outgoing Bean and quiet but imaginitive Ivy, who were sure they wouldn't like each other but end up best friends.

You can read our review of Ivy + Bean: The Musical here. It was one of our favorite productions from Bay Area Children's Theater!

While the tickets for the Marin Theatre Company production are already sold out, we're happy to announce that we're giving away a family four-pack of tickets to the opening-day performance to one lucky Marin Mommies reader! Tickets are good for the Saturday, March 23, 10:30 am show only.

To enter the giveaway, send an email with "Ivy + Bean" in the subject line to contests@marinmommies.com by 11:59 pm on Sunday, March 17, 2013. We'll choose a winner at random on Monday, March 18. Good luck!

My daughter is a huge fan of the Ivy + Bean book series by local author Annie Barrows, so we were really excited to hear that a new children's theater production of Ivy + Bean: The Musical opening at Berkeley's Freight & Salvage. Produced by Bay Area Children's Theater, Ivy + Bean: The Musical is a fun and faithful adaptation of the first book in the New York Times-best-selling series about two second graders, outgoing Bean and quiet but imaginitive Ivy, who were sure they wouldn't like each other but end up best friends.

We were lucky enough to attend the world premiere performance of this delightful children's musical, and we had a great time. The production follows the plot of the first Ivy + Bean book very closely, and shows how Ivy and Bean—two girls with opposite personalities—become forever friends after Ivy helps Bean out of a bind and manages to help infuriate Bean's bossy older sister, Nancy, in the process.

This fast-paced play lasts approximately an hour with no intermission, and is recommended for kids ages 4 and up. The action moves quickly, keeping little ones entertained and enthralled, and Megan Putnam and Catherine Gloria are perfectly cast as the title characters. The other actors handle multiple roles with aplomb (It took my kids—and my husband—a while to figure out that most of the supporting actors had dual roles!)

One of Marin County's most beloved and unique events is the famous Mountain Play—an outdoor theater experience high on the slopes of Mt. Tamalpais that's been going strong for nearly a century—99 years to be exact. 2012's Mountain Play production is Meredith Wilson's The Music Man, the musical tale of fast-talking and charming con man Harold Hill and his scheme to sell the citizens of River City, Iowa on a boys' marching band.

The Mountain Play's production of The Music Man features a professional cast including local singer/songwriter and children's performer Susan Zelinsky, AKA Susan Z, as in the starring role of River City's librarian Marian Paroo and Robert Moorhead as Harold Hill. This year's play is the 30th and final production for Marin County theater legend and Mountain Play veteran James Dunn, too.

Performances take place at 2 pm at Mt. Tam's Cushing Memorial Amphitheater on May 20 and 27, and June 3, 10, 16, and 17. General seating ticket prices range from $30–$40. New this year is half-price general seating admission ($15) for children ages 4–13, and children 3 and under are free. Reserved seats are available for Mountain Play Fan Club members (starting at $56); higher membership levels include perks like reserved parking and special shuttle passes. Order tickets online here or by phone at (415) 383-1100.

Local arts eduction group Youth in Arts presents its new musicl production Photosynthesis—Living Sunlight this Thursday and Friday at the Marin Center Showcase Theater. This world premiere, created in collaboration with the Marin Carbon Project, explains and illustrates the incredible process of photosynthesis through music and theater. The show provides a powerful message about how living close to the earth can save our global environment.

Photosynthesis—Living Sunlight is recommended for children ages 8–12, and runs just under an hour with no intermission.Two performances for local students will be offered on Thursday, May 3 at 9:30 and 11 am and a family performance takes place Friday evening, May 4, at 7 pm.

Tickets for the family performance are $8.50 each and are available at the Marin Center Box Office online or at (415) 473-6800. Tickets to the Thursday student performances can be reserved here.

L. Frank Baum's classic story The Wizard of Oz comes to life in Masque Unit Junior Theatre’s annual live theater production for young children at Marin Center this weekend. Masque Unit’s production and Jim Eiler and Jeanne Bargy’s musical adaptation of The Wizard of Oz introduces children to this timeless masterpiece and offers an afternoon of delightful entertainment. The colorful characters, fast-paced action, and hysterical humor will please not only children of all ages, but adults as well.

After a tornado whisks Dorothy away from her farm in Kansas to the magical land of Oz, the Munchkins and Glinda the Good Witch send her on an adventure to find the mighty Wizard. On her way, Dorothy meets a brainless Scarecrow, a heartless Tin Woodsman, and a Cowardly Lion. Dorothy must avoid the clutches of the Wicked Witch of the West and find the Wizard who will help her get home.

The Children's Theatre Association of San Francisco (CTA) presents its winter 2012 production Rumpelstiltskin. This live musical stage play for children ages 4–10 runs on Saturdays from January 7–February 11, 2012 at the historic Florence Gould Theater in the Legion of Honor museum in San Francisco.

Rumpelstiltskin tells the classic story a poor young girl raised to be a princess, thanks to an odd little man and his magic. Later, she must guess his name or lose her most precious treasure.

The CTA was formed 75 years ago with the support of the Junior League of San Francisco, the San Francisco Board of Education, and the San Francisco Opera and Ballet with the goal of presenting live musical theater to the children of the San Francisco Bay Area. Since 1981, it's been part of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco's cultural programs for schools, presenting its productions to more than 6,000 elementary schoolchildren annually.

There are two performances each Saturday, at 10:30 am and 1 pm, and tickets are $12 each. For more information, and to order tickets online, visit www.ctasf.org or call (415) 248-2677. The Legion of Honor is located in San Francisco's Lincoln Park at 34th Avenue and Clement Street. For more information and directions to the museum, visit www.legionofhonor.org.