The First American Picture Book to Feature an African-American Child Debuts at Stages Theatre Company

HOPKINS, Minn. - Stages Theatre Company (STC) is recognizing the
groundbreaking book The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats which was the first
American picture book that featured an African-American child as the
main character. The world premiere production starts Jan. 15 at the
Hopkins Center for the Arts.

Audiences will join young Peter as he explores his familiar
surroundings, now magically changed by a rare, crystalline blanket of
snow. The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats combines the world of inner-city
life with the power of nature's beauty.

"One of the things that I love about the book is the tender and simple quality of adventure we see in Peter's world," says Artistic Director Sandy Boren-Barrett, who is also directing the production. "Ezra Jack Keats weaves into his plot a sense of the dangers of Peter's innocent childhood, when even a snowball fight becomes a challenge that is recognizable to our youngest readers and audience members."

In 1963, The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats received the Caldecott Award
for most distinguished picture book for children. To purchase tickets,
please visit  www.stagestheatre.org for performance dates and times, or call the box office at (952) 979-1111, Tuesday through Saturday from noon to 6 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for children (ages 5 to 17) and seniors (60+). Lap passes are available for free (ages 0 to 2) and $5 for (ages 3 to 4). The show is suitable for all ages and ends Feb. 14.

Stages Theatre Company was founded in 1984 and since then has grown to
become one of the largest professional theatres for young audiences in
the country. We engage young artists with themes relevant to their lives
and involve them in creating magical works featuring young people in
meaningful roles. Through theatrical productions, workshops,
conservatory classes and other outreach programs, Stages Theatre Company
annually serves more than 128,000 young people and their families.

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For calendar of events, the performance dates are as follows:

January 2010

Friday 15th - 7 p.m.

Saturday 16th - 1 p.m., 7 p.m.

Sunday 17th - 2 p.m.

Monday 18th - 10 a.m., 12:30 p.m.

Wednesday 20th - 10 a.m., 12:30 p.m.

Thursday 21st - 10 a.m.

Friday 22nd - 10 a.m., 7 p.m.

Saturday 23rd - 1 p.m., 7 p.m.

Sunday 24th - 2 p.m., 4:30 p.m.

Wednesday 27th - 10 a.m., 12:30 p.m.

Thursday 28th - 10 a.m.

Friday 29th - 10 a.m., 7 p.m.

Saturday 30th - 1 p.m., 7 p.m.

February 2010

Wednesday 3rd - 10 a.m., 12:30 p.m.

Thursday 4th - 10 a.m., 12:30 p.m.

Friday 5th - 10 a.m., 7 p.m.

Saturday 6th - 1 p.m.

Sunday 7th - 2 p.m., 4:30 p.m.

Wednesday 10th - 10 a.m., 12:30 p.m.

Thursday 11th - 10 a.m., 12:30 p.m.

Friday 12th - 7 p.m.

Saturday 13th - 1 p.m., 7 p.m.

Sunday 14th - 2 p.m.

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Theatre History and Background
 

Stages Theatre Company (STC) was founded in 1984 in the western suburbs of Minneapolis out of a need for quality theatre programming for children. For more than 25 years, it has significantly broadened its reach and scope, involving young people in the theatre arts through opportunities on stage, backstage, in the audience and in the classroom.  

STC has grown to become the third largest nonprofit theatre producer in Minnesota and one of the largest professional theatres for young audiences in the country. During the coming year, it will serve approximately 128,000 young people and their families from throughout the Twin Cities.

Between 1984 and 1997, STC held most of its performances at the Eisenhower Community Center in Hopkins, Minn. During the 1990s, STC took shape into a fully professional theatre company. By developing collaborations with a wide variety of organizations, STC was able to significantly expand the scale and extent of the theater’s programming.  

In the mid-1990s, a unique collaboration by STC, the City of Hopkins, and the Hopkins School District planned and designed the Hopkins Center for the Arts (HCA), the current home of STC. Steve Barberio, the former artistic director, led community efforts to design and fund the $4.3 million, 37,000 square foot, multi-disciplinary arts facility located in downtown Hopkins. Today, this new facility has been widely credited as the catalyst for the rebirth of downtown Hopkins.

Since moving to the HCA in 1997, STC has significantly grown artistically and broadened its audience base. In addition to the main stage, HCA also houses a black box studio space, where STC is able to present more intimate and dramatic material that would not have the same impact if produced on the main stage. The black box studio is the venue for productions dealing with subject matter that demands a more intimate environment, such as A Holocaust Mosaic (an original piece based on the poetry, prose and other writings from the Holocaust) and Stone Hearts (a piece commissioned that portrays a Muslim family’s struggles during the Bosnian War). 

During the last 15 years, STC has increased its annual attendance from 20,000 to almost 90,000, grown the annual operating budget from $100,000 to more than $1.6 million, dramatically increased the size of full-time staff, and significantly expanded the theatre’s production, education and outreach offerings. In addition to its acclaimed main stage productions, STC also offers an Acting Conservatory Program, community workshops, summer and winter theatre workshops and school outreach programs.

Today, STC is recognized as a leader in theatre, education and production programming for children and young adults, and has received a number of regional and national awards and grants. The National Endowment for the Arts supports its work, awarding grants for both productions and school outreach programming. STC was the recipient of the 2001 Award for Arts Organization Excellence in Educational Programming from the Minnesota Alliance for Arts in Education; in 2004, the editors of MPLS.ST.PAUL Magazine selected STC as the “Best Kid’s Theater” in the Twin Cities; and in 2008, Minnesota Parent Magazine voters chose both STC and the Children’s Theatre Company as “Best Children’s Theatre.”