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By PAT BLAUFUSS Westport Country Playhouse will continue its 2013-14 Family Festivities Series with a musical presentation of Diary of a Worm, a Spider, and a Fly, based on the bestselling books by Doreen Cronin and Harry Bliss, on Sunday, March 9, at 1 and 4 p.m., recommended for age 4 and up. Tickets are $20. Running time is approximately one hour. Pre-show activities begin one hour before each performance at 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. Diary of a Worm, a Spider, and a Fly is a coming-of-age musical produced by Omaha Theater Company. Worrying Worm, Fearless Fly, and Sassy Spider find that its not easy being a bug, especially on the first day of school, until every creature finds its special talent. Spider waits anxiously to shed his skin; Worm feels self-conscious and embarrassed for having no legs; and Flys 327 brothers and sisters drive her so crazy that she can hardly focus on schoolwork. The audience will relate to the quirky crawlers as they face problems and milestones common to everyone. An upcoming Family Festivities presentation is Seussical, on Sunday, March 23. Adapted from the Broadway musical about Dr. Seuss stories, and hosted by The Cat in the Hat, the cast features Horton, the elephant; JoJo, the young son of the Mayor of Who-Ville; Miss Gertrude McFuzz, the one-feathered bird; and Lazy Maysie La Bird. Dr. Seuss beloved characters find themselves intertwined in a crazy-quilt adventure, in which the power of imagination and a miraculous think saves the day. Produced by Theatreworks USA, Seussical is recommended for grades K 5. In conjunction with the Family Festivities Series, the Playhouse will host a book collection of gently used and new childrens books for Read to Grow, Inc. Family Festivities Partners are Meredith and David Bukzin, Galia Gichon and Adam Clemens, and Darlene Krenz. Family Festivities Corporate Sponsor is Pitney Bowes. Everyone in the audience requires a ticket. For more information or tickets, call the box office at (203) 227-4177, or toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, off Route 1, Westport. Tickets are available online 24/7 at www.westportplayhouse.org. Stay connected to the Playhouse on Facebook (Westport Country Playhouse), follow on Twitter (@WCPlayhouse), view Playhouse videos on YouTube (WestportPlayhouse) or get an insiders peek on The Playhouse Blog (www.theplayhouseblog.org).
About Westport Country Playhouse
Westport Country Playhouse, named 2013 Theater Company of the Year by The Wall Street Journal, is a nationally recognized, not-for-profit, professional theater under the artistic direction of Mark Lamos and management leadership of Michael Ross. The Playhouse creates five live theater experiences, produced at the highest level, from April through October. Its vital mix of works---dramatic, comedic, occasionally exploratory and unusual---expands the audiences sense of what theater can be. The depth and scope of its productions display the foremost theatrical literature from the past---recent as well as distant---in addition to musicals and premieres of new plays. During the summer, the Playhouse is home to the Woodward Internship Program, renowned for the training of aspiring theater professionals. Winter at the Playhouse, from November through March, offers events outside of the main season---Family Festivities presentations and Script in Hand play readings. In addition, businesses and organizations are encouraged to rent the handsome facility for their meetings, receptions and fundraisers. As an historic venue, Westport Country Playhouse has had many different lives leading up to the present. Originally built in 1835 as a tannery manufacturing hatters leathers, it became a steam-powered cider mill in 1880, later to be abandoned in the 1920s. Splendidly transformed into a theater in 1931, it initially served as a try-out house for Broadway transfers, evolving into an established stop on the New England straw hat circuit of summer stock theaters through the end of the 20th century. Following a multi-million dollar renovation completed in 2005, the Playhouse became a state-of-the-art producing theater, preserving its original charm and character. Today, the not-for-profit Westport Country Playhouse serves as a cultural resource for patrons, artists and students and is a treasure for the State of Connecticut. There are no boundaries to the creative thinking for future seasons or the kinds of audiences and excitement for theater that Westport Country Playhouse can build. Westport Country Playhouses upcoming 2014 season: Noël Cowards A Song at Twilight, an exquisite battle of wits, exploring the nature of passion, the cruelty of love, and the price of hidden secrets, directed by Mark Lamos, April 29 May 17, a co-production with Hartford Stage; the seasons second production will be either a comedy or a world premiere musical event, to be announced at a later date, directed by Mark Lamos, playing June 3 - 21; Nora, Ingmar Bergmans adaptation of Henrik Ibsens A Dolls House, a story of love, blackmail, and the little lies people tell, translated into the English language by Frederick J. Marker and Lisa-Lone Marker, directed by David Kennedy, Playhouse associate artistic director, July 15 August 2; Things We Do for Love, Alan Ayckbourns wickedly funny play that questions just how sane anyone really is when it comes to love, directed by John Tillinger, August 19 September 6; and Intimate Apparel by Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage, an intricate tapestry of the joys, sorrows, tragedy, and triumph of a gifted but lonely African-American seamstress in early 20th century Manhattan who's negotiating the choice between a love that is accepted and one that is true, October 7 November 1. For more information or tickets, call the box office at (203) 227-4177, or toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, off Route 1, Westport. Tickets are available online 24/7 at www.westportplayhouse.org. Stay connected to the Playhouse on Facebook (Westport Country Playhouse), follow on Twitter (@WCPlayhouse), view Playhouse videos on YouTube (WestportPlayhouse) or get an insiders peek on The Playhouse Blog (www.theplayhouseblog.org).
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