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Magical
Moonshine Theatre School Programs
(Note, for
a PDF version of this catalogue that you
can browse or print out, with table of
contents, page numbers, etc., click here)
Magical Moonshine Theatre
has over 30 years of experience in
presenting assembly programs in
California schools, in addition to
mainstage performances coast to coast in
the US and in 18 countries around the
world. Recipients of numerous awards and
honors for their original plays for
youth, the company is know for consistent
excellence and reliability. Educators
routinely refer to MMT productions as the
best they have seen. When you get a MMT
assembly you are getting the original
founders and creative artists performing
for your students. For more information
about any of our programs or to secure a
date, contact Magical Moonshine Theatre
at 707-363-4573 or send us an email.
Answers to some
frequently asked questions: technical
needs, assessibility, program length,
etc.
Animal Folktales of the Americas
Note to school programmers:
Our award winning Animal Folktales of the
Americas is a constantly growing series
of programs as opposed to a single title.
A school assembly program generally
consists of one or two titles as some
titles are about 20-25 minutes long, and
others 45-50 minutes. Two shorter titles
are usually paired to create a 45-50
minute program, although 30 minute
programs are available for younger
audiences.
Animal Folktales of the Americas, Series
Description: The oral traditions
and literature of North, South, and
Central America are rich with humorous
and instructive stories about our furred,
feathered, and scaled neighbors.
"Animal Folktales of the
Americas" is a celebration of the
cultural richness that we enjoy on our
two American continents.
Using original, large scale puppets,
masks and live music and song, the
internationally known Magical Moonshine
Theatre presents an ever growing
collection of original dramas based on
traditional folktales which may include
anything from a story from the Andes
Mountains about how the fox and the
condor brought food to the earth, a tale
from the Bering Strait area about a fox
and caribou who decide to exchange legs,
a Native American story about Coyote,
Mountain Ram and Grizzly Bear, some of
the exploits of Br'er Rabbit, a tale of
an Armadillo family, to a Mexican version
of Aesop's Fables.
In addition to the dramatics and staging
unique to the puppet and mask theatre,
the stories are enriched with live music
played on instruments ranging from the
modern to the ancient; from the accordion
to the traditional charango and zamponia
from Peru, the American banjo, and the
Native American drums and flute.
Animalitos (the little animals)-
-A collection of Aesop's fables woven
together in a magical puppet dance. A
rabbit starts a race with a tortoise, but
seeing that he has plenty of time, he
wanders off, and gets involved with a fox
who is trying to court a crane with a
romantic dinner for two. With some clever
tricks they manage to get some food to
serve but things go awry when the fox
talks the rabbit into being the waiter
for the meal. Meanwhile the tortoise is
getting closer and closer to the finish
line.....
The Armadillo's Rancho-
This story from Argentina tells of a
wealthy Fox who tries to take advantage
of a poor Armadillo, making her work his
garden for him. He thinks he is getting
the best part of the deal, but the
Armadillo is smarter than he is at every
turn and in the end succeeds in setting
things right once and for all.
The Fox and Elk Make a Trade-
-In this story a fox and elk decide that
they are not happy with the way they are
made, so they decide to switch arms and
legs with each other. The fox, now with
very long arms and legs, finds that she
can no longer hunt, and is in danger of
starving. The elk with the short fox arms
and legs can not reach the leaves on the
trees that he is used to eating. Both
finally realize that they were much
better off the way they were originally
and in the end exchange arms and legs
again, happy to have their old limbs
back. The story is humorously set to
music reminiscent of pop tunes of the
50s.
The Fox and the Condor-
In this mythological story from South
America, there is little food on the
earth while in the clouds the birds have
much food. The Condor, the king of the
birds takes pity on a hungry fox and
carries him up to the clouds to eat, but
the greedy fox does not stop eating until
he falls from the cloud and his belly
bursts open, spreading seeds all over the
earth. It is these seeds from which the
plants on earth have descended (so the
tale tells us.)
Coyote and Grizzly Bear- Native
Americans of the Western part of this
continent tell many stories about the
trickster, Coyote. In this story from the
plains states, Coyote plays a trick on
the ungrateful Grizzly Bear, thus saving
the life of Mountain Ram. Although p
resented as a Native American folktale
here, the theme of this story is
universal, and appears in tales from many
cultures around the world. This folktale
is told with masks and Native American
flute and drum.
Coyote Sings- In the
Native American story, Coyote Sings, the
crazy buffoon, Coyote tries desperately
to learn a song. This combined with his
bungling attempts to hunt for food and
impress all his neighbors with his
personal skills make for hilarious
slapstick. Southwest motifs and designs
and Mexican folk tunes make this
bilingual show a very popular addition.
Br'er Rabbit and the Number Nine
Shoes-In this African American
trickster tale, the clever Br'er Rabbit
plays a trick on Br'er Bear, and steals
his fish from him. Br'er Fox watches the
whole trick, but when he tries it himself
his efforts end in disaster. Once again
Br'er Rabbit survives by relying on his
wits. The story is told with large,
direct-manipulation puppets, live banjo
music and singing.
Brer Rabbit and the
Goober Patch-Another trickster,
Brer Rabbit comes to us from Africa, but
has settled right in to American
Folklore. In this puppet tale, Brer
(short for Brother) Fox decides to plant
a garden, and Br'er Rabbit decides to
help himself. The fox decides to set a
trap for the rabbit but Brer Rabbit is
one rabbit who can take care of himself,
and Br'er Fox does not end up with the
prey that he bargained for.
How
the Dragon Got His Horns
In this
Chinese/American tale, Rooster loans his
horns to dragon who never returns them.
This story is told with Chinese style
shadow puppets and paper cut outs and
usually culminates in an audience
assisted dragon dance with our 30 foot
dragon puppet (pictured above.)
Does That Scare You?-
a Southeast Asian Folktale from the Hmong
people. -Long ago a wise, old man lived
with a Bear, a Tiger and a Dragon. One
day the animals all set out to try to
scare one another by seeing who could
make the greatest commotion. When the man
finally took his turn, he used his brains
to teach th e others a lesson. He scared
the animals so badly that bears, tigers
and dragons will no longer live with
people. The story is presented with
shadow puppets, masks, and live music
played on a variety of SE Asian musical
instruments.
Coyote Brings Fire
to the People- It is told that
long ago when the earth was new, the
people of California were cold because
they did not have fire. They went to
Coyote for help and he organized Bear,
Mountain Lion, Rabbit, Squirrel, and Frog
to help steal fire for the people.
Magical Moonshine Theatre presents this
native Californian folktale with shadow
puppets and music.
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SHOWS
Other
Productions:
Shipwrecked! The Adventures of Miss Robin
Crusoe
In this literature inspired adventure
tale, Robin Crusoe (the niece of the
famous Robinson Crusoe) is shipwrecked on
a deserted island and must survive using
her wits. Armed only with a few washed up
parts of her ship and what she can find
on the island, she manages to use basic
mechanical skills to hoist her ship up
from the ocean floor and save herself and
her new mischievous monkey friend from
the island before the volcano blows or
pirates return. This humorous, edge of
the seat adventure story demonstrates the
virtues of bravery again all odds as well
as the knowledge of some useful
mechanical skills and devices. This is
science and literature bound together in
a whopping good musical yarn with a
surprise ending (not to mention the
beautiful textile scenery by California
artist Meri Vahl)!
Take a
virtual tour of this beautiful show: CLICK HERE.
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SHOWS
Other
School Programs
Artist in Schools
Workshops and Residencies:
Magical Moonshine
Theatre artists Michael and Valerie
Nelson are designated California Arts
Council Artists in the Schools. Their
teaching and workshop presenting
activities are as diverse as a 45 minute
workshop to 1/2 day, day long, week long,
month or all school year with curriculum
based on the California Performing Arts
Standards.
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