The Off Broadway Alliance Nominates The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe for BEST FAMILY SHOW
The Off Broadway Alliance, the organization of Off Broadway producers, theaters, general managers, press agents and marketing firms, has announced the nominees for the 2nd Annual Off Broadway Alliance Awards, honoring commercial and not-for-profit productions that opened Off Broadway during the 2011-2012 season. Awards will be presented in six competitive categories: Best New Musical, Best New Play, Best Musical Revival, Best Play Revival, Best Special Event and Best Family Show. Winners in all categories will be selected by secret ballot by members of the awards committee of the Off Broadway Alliance.
In addition to the competitive awards, six Off Broadway Alliance Legend of Off Broadway Awards are being presented for sustained achievement in the world of Off Broadway. The 2012 Legend of Off Broadway recipients are Edward Albee, Gerard Alessandrini, Kathleen Chalfant, Catherine Russelland Mary Louise Wilson.
Two 2012 Off Broadway Alliance Hall of Fame Awards are being presented posthumously to Howard Kissel and Theodore Mann.
Best Family Show
- Alice in Wonderland
- The Amazing Max and the Box of Interesting Things
- The Berenstain Bears LIVE!
- The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
- The Ohmies
- Stinkykids, The Musical
The Off Broadway Alliance is a non-profit corporation organized by theater professionals dedicated to supporting, promoting and encouraging the production of Off Broadway theater and to making live theater increasingly accessible to new and diverse audiences. The Alliance holds monthly meetings and membership is open to everyone in the Off Broadway theater community.
Among its initiatives, The Off Broadway Alliance founded and sponsors 20at20, the biannual event that lets theatergoers purchase $20 tickets to dozens of Off Broadway shows 20 minutes before curtain. It produces a free Seminar Series focusing on the culture, business and history of Off Broadway featuring major players from the Off Broadway scene. And the Alliance created the Off Broadway Economic Impact Report, which outlines Off Broadway’s over $500 million annual impact on the economy of the City of New York.
Broadway World Jr: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
by Erin Leigh Peck: There are two things I’ll say right from the start about Off-Broadway Family Theatre’s production of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe now playing at St. Luke’s Theatre: It’s one of the best pieces of family theatre I’ve seen since I started this column almost a year ago, and five minutes in my daughter whispered in my ear, “I really hate this.”
The reason my daughter “hated it” at first was partially my fault and partially just the way things are in this day of over-produced extravaganza and video-assisted spectacle. For my part, I should have waited until my daughter had read the book. It’s next up for her book club (They just finished “Caddie Woodlawn” and are moving on to “Harriet the Spy”), and I know that if she’d had the pleasure of recognizing familiar characters and scenes she would have been much more excited to see it represented so sparsely but with so much heart and accuracy.The reason it’s one of the best I’ve seen is because of it’s inventiveness, it’s powerful story telling, and the pure, raw talent that has gone into creating and performing this two-person retelling of C.S. Lewis’ classic novel. Two young performers effortlessly transform themselves into all of the book’s characters….human, animal and fantastical….with only the help of the occasional scarf, pair of glasses and a light cue.
About three quarters through, we got to the scene of Aslan’s torture and death. No spoilers here since pretty much everyone who can read has read The Chronicles of Narnia, and those who haven’t have probably caught the movie. In typical fashion, my daughter grabbed my hand and gave me a worried glance….I’m sorry that she had to be unhinged but glad that something caught her attention. From then on, “I Hate it” turned into , “Shhhh!” and “What are those? Stone statues or people turned to stone.” By the end of the show, this past year of Broadway shows and video games melted away and my daughter started to engage and listen. Because everything in Narnia was new to her, I found myself explaining much of the show to my daughter as it went along. It’s a children’s show, enjoyable to adults yet fashioned for kids, but telling such a complex tale in under an hour with only two actors might require a little help from a whispering grown-up if the child hasn’t read the story. I hope they are still running once we get through reading the book so that we can return to St. Luke’s Theatre and see the show with new insight.
I thoroughly enjoyed the show from start to finish, and my daughter ended up having a good time by the end. More importantly, she got a taste of the real magic of theatre…two actors and a director making something from nothing….and my daughter is now eager to read the book and experience all that C.S. Lewis has to offer. We may also catch the film. I’m not fancy.
Broadway World: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe is Cute and Compact
by Charles Quittner: The wardrobe sure has gotten petite since it’s gigantic 2005 film adaptation. Inventively set to a smaller scale, and a shorter running time for a younger audience, Off Broadway Family Theatre’s production of “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” gives a fresh new look at the classic novel. The epic nature of the C.S. Lewis’s timeless thematic books has been transformed to adorable, simple charm. Josh Iacovelli’s innovative two piece set includes a trunk and a hat rack which serves as various Narnian staples like the famous lamp post and the stone table on which Aslan is somewhat brutally sacrificed as in the book.
At the top of the show, Peter, the eldest Pevensie child draws a white Circle to differentiate the showing from the telling,. In this circle, he and his youngest sister, Lucy, spin their tale of how they literally stumbled upon a wonderful new land while fulfilling an important prophesy. Good ultimately triumphs over evil and important lessons in areas such as responsibility and greed are explored.
Julia Beardsley O’Brien’s clever bare-bones staging lets the audience’s imagination run wild with the two capable actors.
Filled with amusing moments sure to keep children and grown-ups enthralled for it’s brief 45 minute running time, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” is a worthy, often magical, inaugural play for The Off Broadway Family Theatre.
Eight Thumbs Up from NYC Urban Life!
Saturday, November 26, 2011
This morning my 3 and I went off to St. Luke’s Theatre to watch an 11:00 a.m. performance of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. Its always a tricky thing seeing seeing the play of a great book after you’ve seen a great movie of a great book. 1 of my 3 had read the book, 2 of my 3 remembered the movies fondly, and the 3rd had a mild memory of it all but she just turned 6 and there are so many more important things to remember when your 6.
The films The Chronicles of Narnia (The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005), Prince Caspian (2008)), directed by Andrew Adamson, were very well done – a lovely series of films. My anxiety was that my children would expect great production values from this 100 (?) seat house. So, that was a great start of the conversation to prepare their minds; what can we expect if the house is so small that there was no rake (the seats did not slope) and there were only 2 performers in the entire cast. It was a good conversation to have. Lots of great ideas were shared and expectations were adjusted appropriately. In the 50 minutes it took to tell the tale, my 3 were riveted the entire time. Andrew Fortman (Peter) and Erin Layton (Lucy) did a great job, with no set, nominal props but great story telling skills, at taking us back and forth through the wardrobe, conveying the emotional ups and downs this adventure. This creative theatrical experience garnered an eight thumbs up from this clan!
The Empire State Tribune: Off-Broadway Family Theatre Launches with The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
by Katie Hay: Aslan is on the move off-Broadway. On October 22nd, Off-Broadway Family Theater debuts Le Clanche du Rand’s adaption of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. This is the first production that the small theater company has produced.
Julia O’ Brien, producer and director of this play, examined children’s theatrical entertainment choices in New York and said, “there is room for more.” O’ Brien hopes to create “experiences that open up discussion” allowing families to “walk away with a conversation.” Off-Broadway Family Theater is her “brain-child” that she hopes will facilitate those family learning experiences.
With this goal in mind, O’Brien says she chose this adaption of The Lion, the Witch and The Wardrobe because it gave her “a very close experience of reading the novel.” Many times, O’ Brien feels, “you see something, and think ‘it wasn’t like it was in my imagination.’” This play does just that.
Actors Andrew Fortman and Erin Layton are the sole performers, playing every part. O’Brien said of Fortman, “from the bratty child to Aslan,” his “talent and skill are shown off so well.” Erin Layton “plays Lucy so beautifully and openhearted,” O’ Brien remarked. Furthermore, the director said they “both understand the heart of the story and bring a sensitivity there.”
The mission statement of Off-Broadway Family Theater is “to provide quality theatrical experiences for family audiences by presenting both new and classic plays targeted towards children while still appealing to adults.” Adults will be inspired to converse with their children because, as O’ Brien states, “they will find something in it for themselves.”
Read more: http://empirestatetribune.com/?p=2418