EQT Children's Theater Festival Ticket Giveaway

Happy May! We are so excited it's May because we *think* it has to warm up eventually. 😃 Besides the prospect of sunshine, my second favorite reason for excitement in May is the EQT Children's Theater Festival. We have loved going to this Festival each year as a family. There are always unique shows that come from around the world and we love seeing our kids enjoy these interesting options. This year there are 6 sensational performances with a Sensory-Friendly performance of The Rainbow Fish as well. 

• Who and What: The Cultural Trust presents the 32nd annual EQT Children's Theater Festival which continues to bring the best international theater for children of all ages to Pittsburgh.
• When: May 17-20, 2018 | Thursday, 10am-2pm, Friday- Sunday 10am-5pm
• Where: Downtown Pittsburgh's Cultural District

Here is a list of some of the great shows in this year's line up. Tickets are only $9 and kids 2 and under are free (a lap pass is still required). 

Featured Event!

Terrance Simien & the Zydeco Experience

Terrance Simien

In Terrance Simien & the Zydeco Experience, audiences will take a multicultural tour of the world and will feel the spirit and joy of Creole country.

Featured Event!

Panda's Home

Compagnia TPO

In this imaginary and interactive journey, audience members will explore China’s stories, tradition, and culture, following the footprints left by a panda. They’ll encounter bamboo forests, fireworks, kites, and more.

Featured Event!

The Rainbow Fish

Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia

The Rainbow Fish will enchant even the youngest child with his silver scales and heart of gold in this award-winning book about the beautiful fish who learned to share his most prized possession.

Featured Event!

Poggle

Barrowland Ballet

This warm-hearted performance uses live music, clapping rhythms, and comedy to engage the youngest audience members in an imaginative and adventurous exploration with Poggle, a friendly woodland creature.

Featured Event!

The Young King

Slingsby

The language of Oscar Wilde joins internationally-acclaimed theatre company Slingsby as we journey to faraway lands in this interactive experience.

Featured Event!

Zebras

Born In A Taxi

From Born in a Taxi in Australia comes a dazzle of rare chatty zebras sure to delight and amuse children and families of all ages!

Featured Event!

Sunjata Kamalenya

Experiential Theater Company

Sunjata Kamalenya is a completely interactive show about a magical world filled with sorcery and enchantment, celebrating the hero of West African legend, Sunjata Keita.

Besides the shows, there will be a ton of FREE activities for kids to enjoy! Imagination Playground, Free Mini Music Lessons, Play Boxes, Sticker Hut, Improv Workshops, Musical Entertainment, Eyeball Art, Hands-On History, Photo Booth Fun, Frog Stop Scavenger Hunt + so much more! 

Be sure the check the Children's Theater Festival website for all the info regarding Parking, Transportation, Food Options, Festival Guides, Restrooms, FAQ's + more. 

GIVEAWAY

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We are excited to giveaway a family 4-pack of tickets to one show to one lucky family! 

(The vouchers are not redeemable for The Rainbow Fish or The Young King.)

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This post sponsored by The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. All opinions remain my own and I don't endorse venues that my family doesn't love!

Ticket Giveaway: EQT Children's Theater Festival

One of our favorite Pittsburgh family events of the year is just a month away! The EQT Children's Theater Festival is a 4 day event with live performances, free activities, outdoor fun + much more! Affordable tickets make this a great option for family fun on Thursday, May 18 - Sunday, May 21, 2017.

Located in the Downtown Pittsburgh Cultural District, this year's EQT Children's Theater Festival includes:

• Professional theater performances from around the world
• Over 40 FREE hands-on educational and cultural activities!
• Family-friendly gallery installations, public art and interactive art!
• FREE outdoor pop-up performances featuring local and regional artists!
• Frog Stop Scavenger Hunt throughout the Cultural District featuring a free, fun prize!

Festival Grounds

The festival grounds will include a variety of food options and vendors, visual art programming at local galleries, pop-up green spaces, free hands-on activities, and free outdoor performances coordinated with Youth Express. 

Festival hours 

10:00am-2:00pm on Thursday, May 18 and 10:00am-6:00pm on Friday, May 19, through Sunday, May 21, 2017.

Featured Performances

MUFARO’S BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTERS by Dallas Children’s Theater
United States 
Ages 5-11 | 65 minutes
Venue: August Wilson Center, 980 Liberty Avenue
When Mufaro learns that a great African king wants to meet the most worthy and beautiful women in order to choose a wife, he decides that both of his daughters should go.  During their journey to the King, Mufaro’s beautiful daughters Manyara and Nyasha encounter mysterious situations that test their courage, kindness and strength of spirit.  Celebrate goodness, generosity and love with traditional chanting, rhythmic drumming, and glorious African song in this beautiful Zimbabwe-based Cinderella tale based on the 1988 Caldecott Honor Award book by John Steptoe.  The story was adapted for the stage by Karen Abbott, with music and lyrics by S-Ankh Rasa.

THE WAY BACK HOME by Teater Refleksion and Branar Theater

Denmark and Northern Ireland

Ages 3-6 | 40 minutes
Venue: Trust Arts Education Center, 805-807 Liberty Avenue
When a boy discovers a single-propeller airplane in his closet, he does what any young adventurer would do: he flies into outer space!  Millions of miles from earth, the plane begins to sputter and quake.  The boy makes a daring landing on the moon where he realizes he’s not alone up there.  Based on the book by Oliver Jeffers, The Way Back Home explores the boundless imagination of children through puppetry, wonderful music, and creative wordless storytelling. 

WE BUILT THIS CITY by Polyglot

Australia
All Ages | 30 minutes
Venue: 7th Street & Penn Avenue, Outdoor interactive installation, with partial tentThe whole family will enjoy building the cities of their dreams in this giant cardboard construction site.  Thousands of cardboard boxes take over in this interactive performance where children build entire cities and towns of skyscrapers, tunnels, and sprawling estates that reflect the time and place of their immediate culture.  With a rocking soundtrack and Polyglot Theatre artists roaming the site, We Built This City is one of the happiest projects you will ever experience.  We Built This City is made possible in-part by the Maranne P. Welch Family Endowment.  Established in 2015, the Maranne P. Welch Family Endowment supports adventurous theater for young audiences.

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ELEPHANT AND PIGGIE’S WE ARE IN A PLAY!

The Kennedy Center Theater for Young Audiences on Tour

United States
Ages 3-8 | 60 minutes
Venue: Byham Theater, 101 Sixth Street
Elephant Gerald and Piggie sing and dance their way through plenty of pachydermal peril and swiney suspense in Elephant & Piggie’s We Are in a Play!  This vaudevillian romp of a musical is based on Mo Willems’s beloved, award-winning, best-selling children’s books.  Together, these best friends face fundamental questions like: What do you wear to a fancy pool costume party? Should you share your ice cream? And how can two friends play with one toy? Backed by the nutty backup singers The Squirrelles, the duo even gets the audience involved in the action. You’ll be doing the “Flippy Floppy Floory” dance all night long!  This performance is also part of the 2016-2017 Citizens Bank Children’s Theater Series.

*Sensory Friendly Performances, which will include interactivity, rhythm, repetition, reduced sound levels and gentle lighting are scheduled at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 20, 2017.

SIMPLE GIFTS by Cashore Marionettes

United States
Ages 7+ | 60 minutes
Venue: Trust Arts Education Center, 805-807 Liberty Avenue
Experience a series of touching and poignant scenes from everyday life told through a beautiful and skillful manipulation of marionettes.  Set to music, this theatrical and artistic program will provide an entertaining and sensitive vision of what it is to be human.  This performance is also part of the 2016-2017 EQT Bridge Theater Series.  

PULSE by Teatro al Vacio

Mexico
Ages 0-2 | 30 minutes
Venue: Cabaret at Theater Square, 655 Penn Avenue
Carefully designed for the youngest of theatergoers, Pulse uses soft textures and lively games to invite infants and toddlers into a safe, positive, and friendly environment that will stimulate their sense of creativity. Actors create an extraordinary space ready for exploration, connecting with simple materials to transform their surroundings into a world of play.  This event is a U.S. premiere.

Sensory-Friendly Performances Schedule

Sensory-friendly events during this year’s festival include ELEPHANT AND PIGGIE’S WE ARE IN A PLAY! taking placed at the Byham Theater, 101 6th Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15222. Sensory-friendly performances will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 20, 2017.

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Tickets and Information

Tickets are $9 for features performances. Multi-show packs are available and offered for as low as $6 per show! Flex Vouchers from the Citizens Bank Children’s Theater Series and EQT Bridge Theater Series are honored for all ticketed events taking place during the festival. Visit www.TrustArts.org/PGHkids, call (416) 456-6666, or pick up tickets in person at Theater Square Box Office, 655 Penn Avenue. For groups of 10+ call (412) 471-6930, or visit GroupSales@TrustArts.org. 

Ticket Giveaway

We are excited to give away two sets of tickets to two lucky families!
(Tickets can be redeemed for any show EXCEPT Elephant and Piggie's We Are In A Play.)
Click link to enter to win!

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Getting Around Downtown

Here are some ways to make your trip to the Festival easier!

• Reserve parking in advance with vouchers for the Theater Square Garage. Learn how here.
• Visit ParkPGH.org for real time parking availability in over 20 Downtown parking garages.
• Visit the Port Authority website for bus and trolley schedules and routes to the Festival. 

This post sponsored by Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. If I don't love it, I don't endorse it. ❤

Ticket Giveaway: Caps for Sale

 I was so nostaligic when I heard that Caps for Sale: The Musical was coming to Pittsburgh! My mind immediately flew to the memory of my grandpa reading this book to me over and over again when I was little. I don't know what happened to that book, but I can't wait to re-introduce my kids to this classic tale! Turning it into a musical is even more fun as the music continues to capture kid's attention throughout the show.

The Adventure Theater MTC musical, CAPS FOR SALE, is based on the children’s book by Esphyr Slobodkina.  The cast of six (6) Washington, DC based professional actors will amaze you while playing eleven (11) roles, including a band of monkeys and a new character based on the author of the book and her cat, Scaramouche. The musical score, by Carnegie Mellon Graduate, Bill Yanesh, will have you singing and dancing. Michael J. Bobbitt (Playwright – Three Little Birds), co-writes the musical with Ann Marie Mulhearn Sayer, lifelong friend of Esphyr Slobodkina. Director, Patrick Pearson, of the world famous Ford’s Theatre, leads a team of award winning DC area designers, to bring you the story of the Peddler and his funny Monkey friends to life. Celebrate the 75th Anniversary with the world premiere new musical.

Recommended for ages 3 to 10, this musical is a wonderful educational experience that is sure to enchant the entire family. The peddler has a huge stack of caps, balanced carefully on top of his head. Brown caps, blue caps, gray caps, and red caps. But no one wants to buy a cap. So he goes for a walk in the country, and takes a nap under a shady tree. When he wakes up, the caps are gone — all except his own checked one. Where could his caps have disappeared to? And how will he ever get them back? Journey along with the peddler in his quest to find the mysteriously missing caps as the 60 minute presentation celebrates the 75th Anniversary of this favorite book.

There will be 9 performances all around the Pittsburgh area! Tickets start at $10.50, kids 2 & under are free.                                                                                                       

City: Byham Theater, Sunday, November 15 at 2 p.m. and Monday, November 16 at 10:15 a.m. (group sales only)
East: Penn Hills High School, Wednesday, November 18 at 7 p.m.
North: North Allegheny Intermediate, Thursday, November 19 at 5:30 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.
West: Cornell High School, Friday, November 20 at 7 p.m.
South: Mt. Lebanon High School, Saturday, November 21 at 11 a.m. & 2 p.m.
Butler: Seneca Valley Senior High School, Sunday, November, 22 at 2 p.m.

GIVEAWAY:

I have 2 tickets to give away to TWO winners! You will receive a voucher which can be redeemed for tickets by calling 412-456-6666, or purchased in person at the Box Office at Theater Square, 655 Penn Avenue, Downtown Pittsburgh. Giveaway is only open for 3 days, click below to enter! 

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I love The Citizens Bank Children’s Theater Series which bring  kids shows to Pittsburgh that showcase imagination, creativity and fun from around the world!  Future shows for the 2015-2016 season include Junie B.'s Essential Survival Guide to School, Room on the Broom, Big Bad Wolf, and Goodnight Moon and the Runaway Bunny.  
Presented by Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. Go here for more details.