My daughter Parker is one of the raccoons. She absolutely loved it! She thought it was so much fun. I don’t think she fully realizes that this is the end of it. She wants to keep going and keep doing it.”Carol Lawrence, parent
CULLMAN – The Missoula Children’s Theatre (MCT), through a program with Cullman City Parks and Recreation, presented “Little Red Riding Hood” at the Cullman Civic Center on Saturday, Jan. 23. With the help of a few actors and directors from MCT, over 60 area children were able to turn the classic fairy tale into an entertaining performance with lots of twists, turns and giggles along the way!
During Saturday’s performances, pre-teen Red Riding Hood and her friends tried to stay on the straight and narrow path as they made their way toward Grandma’s house. Pesky raccoons, a gang of young wolves and troublesome dark shadows kept Red and her friends on their toes as they struggled to keep up with Grandma’s basket of goodies.
Surprisingly, well-known characters weren’t quite their usual selves during the show; the Big Bad Wolf wasn’t such a bad guy and the best quality of the handsome Woodsman was his dashing good looks. Red Riding Hood’s family took part in the show and everyone loved them. Mother Hood, Sister Hood, Brother Hood, Baby Hood and Robin Hood made appearances throughout the performance.
“This is our first time to work with the Missoula Children’s Theatre,” said Carol Lawrence, whose daughter was in the play. “We loved it; I wish they (MCT) would come around more often,” she smiled. “It’s been a busy week. They had auditions Monday and then they started Monday night with practices for the older kids and then they had practices every night since then except Friday night due to the weather. It’s almost like a theater camp, an intensive week-long theater camp where they come in and do their thing and put on a show. It’s great!
“My daughter Parker is one of the raccoons,” she added. “She absolutely loved it! She thought it was so much fun. I don’t think she fully realizes that this is the end of it,” she chuckled. “She wants to keep going and keep doing it. She will be doing it again next year for sure!”
“I liked the play. I tried out but didn’t get a part – I got stage fright,” 10-year-old Piper Lawrence grinned shyly. “I am going to try it again next year.”
The children worked very hard, and in the end, performed like professionals!
MCT is a nonprofit organization that fosters enrichment and education in children of all ages through theater. They are best known for their tour project, which is the largest touring children's theater program in the United States. They work with more than 65,000 children in nearly 1,200 week-long residencies each year and cover all 50 states, as well as 16 other countries.
Each week, up to 45 teams of two tour actors/directors travel to new towns, audition and cast 50-60 local children for an original musical production. They then run rehearsals and teach workshops. At the end of the week, the children perform a full-scale musical, including full costumes, sets, lights and props that the directors bring along with them.
For more information about MCT, call 406-728-1911, visit http://mctinc.org/ or follow them on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/MissoulaChildrensTheatre. For more information about Cullman Parks and Recreation programs, visit http://cullmanrecreation.org/.
