Tag: Portland theater

Camps and Classes, Holiday, Theater

Mary Poppins at North West Children’s Theater

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This weekend we had the pleasure of meeting some friends at Northwest Children’s Theater for their holiday show- Mary Poppins! The day was fantastic for many reasons.

Chicken participated in their Girl Scouts workshop before the show. It was such a fun experience for her! There were four teachers, some of whom she recognized from other shows we have gone to. I mean, she got to hang out with Donkey from Shrek the Musical! That alone made her day. They played acting games, saw backstage, and explored the costume area. They even learned one of the songs and a bit of the choreography. She had so many things to share with us when it was over.

While she did that, Nugget and I headed to Starbucks to meet some special people in our lives and play Uno. A win for all! Well, me. I crushed him. No mercy, mamas! Then it was time to wander back over to the theater.

The look on his face when he saw his little buddy and the hug they gave each other made my eyes fill with tears. They were so excited to see each other and to see the play!

The opening set was beautiful. Light was used to portray smoke rising from chimneys, which fascinated both boys. All of the sets were beautiful and changed frequently. The kid actors were adorable and Mary Poppins herself was spot on. All of classic songs are there, along with some not found in the movie. Mary Poppins did her flying with an umbrella thing, which was a huge highlight for all the kids. Choreography seemed like it was in slow motion, but the kids seemed to like it because it made it easier for them to mimic later. Actors frequently used the aisle, and Nugget did not ask even once if they were there to eat him.

As we left the show, our little 5-year-old buddy said “that was awesome!” as Nugget proudly sached down the aisle singing Let’s Go Fly a Kite. The girls were a little deeper in their thoughts and had lots of good things to say.

As always, the kids had fun getting their programs signed and their pictures taken. As usual, Nugget refused to go near any of the girls. He is so weird.

Once we got home, they played the soundtrack on our Alexa and Nugget even put on a penguin costume to act out the penguin scene from the movie (the song is in the play but is sadly penguin free).

So….

What it is: a fun family holiday show, full of music and beautiful sets, engaging, perfectly time for those dying to see the upcoming Mary Poppins Returns movie (me! me!), a great date afternoon for the family.

What it is not: Short! It ran about 3 hours with the intermission so may not be the best choice for very young children who aren’t used to theater

Would we recommend it? Yes! Completely! It is running through January 6th and tickets, or what is left of them, can be found here:

https://nwcts.org/

Theater

Ella Enchanted (Oregon Children’s Theater)

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So this weekend was Ella Enchanted at OCT.  Nugget was in a cranky mood and said he in no way wanted to go watch a show about princesses.  I told him this was an un-princess story and to get his little tushy in the car (and be nice about it).  With a frown on his face, he got in the car and buckled up.  He even found a pair of headphones in the car and put them on so he wouldn’t have to be tortured with all the princessness.  I ignored him and acted as if everything was fine.  So it was one of those mornings.  Yay.

Ella Enchanted is the story of a princess who is given the gift/curse of obedience.  She has to do anything anyone tells her to, which has some obvious down sides.  Ella is a likeable young girl who strives to find her independence. She has a an endearing mother, a wicked step family, and a clueless step father who make her plight all the more difficult.  All the trappings of a classic fairy tale.

We got there and found our seats to be in the first balcony.  We had never had seats there before and they were pretty good!  Nugget kept on his cranky pants- and the headphones.  But he did subtly lift them up during the good parts and had a list of things he liked once the play was over.

Chicken did a lot of giggling and smiling.  The evil step sisters were a hit, and she loved the concept of the play.  She was able to draw parallels between Ella and other well known fairy tales.  She was even pleased to find the word “obey” on a vocabulary test at school a few days later!  Who says theater isn’t educational?

Overall, the talent was fantastic and the staging was beautiful.  There were a few parts that could have been cut out and I don’t think any of us would have missed them.  But even those parts were pleasant enough.

What it is: sweet, funny, with a positive female lead, and un-princess fairy tale, well produced,  and enjoyable.

What it is not: super fast paced, Nugget’s favorite

Would we recommend it:  Chicken and I would, Nugget not so much

 

Theater, Upcoming

Beaverton Civic Theater 2019 Season

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BCT just announced it’s upcoming season and it sounds like a fun season for families!

They have two mainstage productions that have the potential to be family friendly depending on the age of your children- Diary of Anne Frank and Clue: the Musical.  These productions are typically $15 for adults and $5 for children.

They are also having a few productions targeting children and families through their Young Audiences program.  These productions are typically $5.

They are doing Knuffle Bunny again this year.  We saw it at least twice when they did it a couple of years ago and it is worth the $5.  Be prepared for a lot of dramatic wailing on the part of Trixie, but that’s kind of what she does for the whole book, too.

Another show we are excited about is Charlotte’s Web!  We haven’t gotten to see this production as a family and we are all looking forward to it!  They are also doing a concert version of Beauty and the Beast.  I’m a little disappointed it isn’t a fully staged production because it is one of our absolute favorites, but it makes sense given their space limitations.  And since we are all suckers for all things Beauty and the Beast, we will be there with Belles (hee hee) on.

BCT also announced a new program we are excited about.  It is called Troupe BCT.  Children ages 8 and up will be able to audition to be part of the training intensive program, which will culminate in a public production of Seussical the Musical.  Another family favorite!  Chicken will be auditioning, but we will be at the show regardless of whether or not she is lucky enough to be selected.  I love that BCT is increasing their theater outreach for youth.  Yay BCT!

Fall Activities, Spring and Summer Activities, Theater, Winter Activities

Northwest Children’s Theater

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Like I said, we go to A LOT of theater.  Like, A LOT.  Sometimes twice in a weekend.  And we love every moment of it.  Of course, each of us has our favorite plays and our not so favorite plays.  Chicken and Nugget particularly love musicals.  They have been known to come home singing the parts of songs they can remember, make related costumes out of computer paper, post hand made posters about the play all over the house, and reenact their favorite scenes.  That’s some of the many reasons I love taking them to theater.  We not only have a great time together, but they learn from the plays and engage in creative activity related to it long after the play itself is over.

Northwest Children’s Theater is a great way to introduce your kiddos to the performing arts.  While I will post about individual plays we go to, the theater itself deserves a nod.

Located in Portland near Providence Park, prices are reasonable (and discounted if you buy a season subscription), and sometimes Gold Star offers even deeper discounts for specific performances.  Full price single tickets range between $16 and $25.  If you purchase a full subscription by the designated date- usually sometime in the spring or summer- an actor dressed as a character from the upcoming season will hand deliver your tickets.  They come in full costume, bring the tickets, balloons, and posters, talk with the kiddos and take pictures.  We have met the characters at the park and the kiddos have always loved it.  Well, except the time we got Cinderella.  Nugget is afraid of princesses.  I have no idea why.

They offer a wide variety of plays that are all family friendly.  Each season they offer a play specifically for the younger toddler crowd.   This year it is Elephant & Piggie’s We Are in a Play.  We saw it when they did it a couple of years ago and it is adorable.  These plays are generally 45 to 60 minutes with simple dialogue, silliness, and fun.  The remainder of the plays generally run 90-120 minutes plus an intermission.  Adults are often cast in some of the main roles, but there are always children in the supporting roles, and sometimes in the main as well.

The plays they chose are engaging for kids, and often fun for the adults.  Sets are colorful, costumes are tasteful, and it’s just a fun time.  Heads up for the nervous kiddos, it’s not uncommon for actors to come down the aisle.  It took me a full theater season to convince Nugget the characters would not eat him.

After the plays, families are invited to stay and have their programs signed by the cast and take pictures with the cast if they so desire.  Chicken and Nugget LOVE this part (although Nugget refuses to be photographed with a girl) and often give me the honor of signing a program they design themselves when we get home.

In addition to plays, they offer camps and classes.  Each of my kiddos has done a camp- Chicken did My Little Pony and Nugget did Elephant and Piggie.  They each had a great time and made new friends.  Camps vary from exploratory to skill based to putting on an actual play.  They also do school based programs and even have Girl Scout workshops.  Chicken did the Peter Pan Girl Scout workshop and really enjoyed it.  She definitely recommends it.

In summary, we love Northwest Children’s Theater.  We think you might, too.

What it is: fun take on children’s theater, affordable, creative, varied in what they offer, appropriate for many age ranges, a great opportunity to photograph your kid with some of their favorite characters without going all the way to Disney Land, a great way to introduce your family to theater without having to worry your kid will be the only kid there and will somehow ruin the experience for everyone else (come on.  You know you thought it as soon as I mentioned taking a young child to a play).

What it’s not: particularly comfy in terms of seating (seating is on old church pews, but they do have cushions available), a fancy pants venue

Do we recommend it?  1000% yes

You can get more information on their website:  https://nwcts.org/

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Welcome and About

Welcome!

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Thank you for visiting!  I am new to the world of blogging, so we shall see how this goes!  I am excited about learning and sharing some of the adventures I have with Chicken and Nugget.

Chicken is my 12-year-old daughter and Nugget is my 10-year-old son.  Although if asked, they will both say they are Nugget.  While I would love to say that we go out and about on a regular basis due to my amazing organization and creativity, it’s really just a survival strategy.  We all do better when we are out doing something, learning together, and kept busy (that’s mom code for the kids fight less if we have something to do).  I started taking them places when they were pretty young, and I am lucky that they are now pros at going out and about, and know the behavior drill for the fun things we do.  They also know I will not hesitate to end the activity and head home if they don’t hold up their end of the deal.

Because I am a huge fan of survival, over the years we have found some favorite places and activities, and continue to seek out new adventures.  I often get asked “how do you find all these things?”  Since I don’t have a good or coherent answer, I thought I would start to share the places we go and opinions of them so that maybe you will be inspired to try something new with your kids.

My goal is to provide you with the basic info- where is it, how much does it cost, etc., as well as our perspective.  The good, the not great, if we recommend it.  As we get started, I will share things we are currently doing as well as fun activities from the past.  And yes, we go to a lot of theater.  Like, A LOT of theater. We all love a good musical!

We are doing this completely independently and do not receive any money or perks for our reviews.

All that said, thank you again for taking the time to look at our blog!  We hope hope you find inspiration for things to do with your own chickens and nuggets!

Find us on Facebook at @adventureswithchickenandnugget

-Erica