The Spooky Time!

Perfect for Fall Festivals and Halloween Celebrations!
Academic Content Standards: Supports Natural Science Standards

When the leaves turn bright colors and night falls earlier each day, it’s time to gather and share thrilling tales full of suspense and surprises. This program of spooky tales is made up of great stories that range from fun to scary depending on the age of the audience. Young children will participate in a combination of original tales, folklore and songs that conclude with happy endings. These experiences will excite their imaginations without being too scary. Older audiences will hear strange, spine tingling tales full of ghosts, witches and odd creatures of the night! Spooky time programs are ideal to share around a campfire or on a Halloween hayride.*

*Fees for this program will be negotiated for festivals that need programming beyond an hour.

Winters Tales to Warm the Heart

Early Childhood
Grades Pre-School
Academic Content Standards: Supports Natural Science Standards

Welcome the first snowfall and the long nights with old tales from all over the world. Youing bear, an adorable hand puppet introduces these tales as he grows sleepy and prepares to hibernate. The audience hears, How the Evergreen Trees Got Their Name (Native American), The Snow Maid (Russia), Halvor and the Trolls from Norway. (Jan Brett used this story for inspiration for her famous book. This performance features puppets, songs, movement and poems that will fully engage the young learner. Students review the topics of hibernation for animals and insects, how trees adapt to winter and why it snows. It is also a great opportunity for families to come together to enjoy the winter holidays.

Beauty Flies! Butterflies

Early Childhood
Grades Pre-School
Academic Content Standards: Natural Science Life Cycles

This story program celebrates the butterflies’ wonderful life cycle and adaptations through old folklore and original tales. I also use puppets and huge butterflies that add spectacle and wonder to the presentation. Younger students learn the butterfly song and they discover how butterflies came to be. This tale is followed by an original story told by two caterpillar puppets. One caterpillar longs to become a butterfly while the other is not at all sure how he can survive. He soon discovers that butterflies have their own ways of adapting and thriving. The students learn an interactive metamorphosis poem that describes each of the four stages. They will experience an original tale about a girl who discovers the secret of the monarch butterflies and uses it to win a treasure. This program is full of audience participation that encourages the students to take on an active role in the performance.

On the Tail of the Dragon: A Chinese/Asian New Year Celebration

1st – 3rd grade
Academic Content Standards:  Social Studies for the early elementary grades

This performance of stories from Chinese and Asian traditions introduces young learners to the Festival Chinese New Year. They will discover the joyous, unifying and cultural practices the take up this delightful celebration. They will hear stories from Vietnam, Korea, and China that invite them to participate using oral sound effects and choral response. This program embodies traditional practices that include family gatherings, the reverence for ancestors, gift giving and hopes for the future year. At the end of the performance everyone is invited to enact the dragon dance from China! Recommended for elementary audiences, K-6 and their families.

The Story Sampler

1st – 5th grade
Academic Content Standards: Language Arts

The art of storytelling grew out of this ancient practice of sharing tales by word of mouth. Many of these stories have been preserved by passing them down from generation to generation. Students who experience this dynamic art form will be introduced to different types of tales that are now considered traditional literature. They will be invited to explore their own storytelling talents through audience participation and they will consider the unique features of each type of tale.

Younger grades ( 1-2) will hear an Aesop Fable, Bell the Cat in which a clever mouse learns that not all bright ideas are the best solutions. The audience will be presented a trickster tale that features clever animal characters that are often too smart for their own good. They will participate in a contest tale from Borneo in which the winds battle for power over the sky. And they will be engaged in the Grimm Brother’s classic fairy tale, Hansel and Gretel.

Older Grades (3-5) will hear a European fairytale collected by the Grimm Bothers in which a servant girl discovers an enchanted land under a well. They will discover through a Native American legend that not heroes are endowed with super powers, some are excellent problem solvers. They will explore the features of a contest tale in which natural elements battle for power. They will experience a spooky story guaranteed to thrill their imaginations and fill them with suspense.

THE STORY SAMPLER Program is filled with many opportunities to participate through song, repeated phrase and oral sound effects. The audiences will consider and discuss the attributes of each type of traditional tale and compare these forms to stories that they know. This assembly program promises to delight students while advancing their learning in the area of Language Arts.

The Myths and Legends of Early Civilizations

grades 5th – middle school
Supports History and Social Studies content standards. 

Ancient people told remarkable tales about their origins and beliefs. These myths describe each culture’s unique explanation of creation, natural phenomenon and the conflicts that shaped their worldview. Your students will hear myths and legends from Egypt, Greece/Rome, China, and Native American cultures. In between the storytelling the audience will be shown pictures and objects that represent the ideas and beliefs that are expressed in the myths. They will discuss these topics through a guided question and answer session. This program is an ideal way to introduce the study of ancient civilizations and early history. The myths and legends are adapted from classical sources and include the following titles: The Myth of Nut and Geb from Ancient Egypt, The Myth of Persephone and Hermes from Greece and Rome. The origin of snow from China and How the Hummingbird Got His Ruby Colored Throat from Native American tradition.

Booking Information

Available Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 1:30pm
Performance Price in Columbus Metro Area: $135
Audience Limit: 130 Students
Performance Length: 45-50 minutes
Special Equipment: Microphone on stand (no podiums please)
All programs available throughout the school year.

*Fees for “Spooky Time” will be negotiated for festivals that need programming beyond an hour.