The State Theatre’s school-day matinees are a great introduction to the performing arts and an effective, creative way to explore a variety of curriculum areas. They help students meet the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards—not only in the arts, but in the other content areas as well. To help connect the performance to your classroom activities, we provide specially-designed Keynotes, a study guide containing background on the performance and artists; classroom activities that engage students in reading, writing, listening, analyzing, and creating; resources for further study; and information for students about their roles and responsibilities as members of the audience.
The Adventures of Harold and the Purple Crayon
MacHomer
Soledad Barrio and Noche Flamenca
The Grapes of Wrath
The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Other Eric Carle Favorites
Graham Lustig's The Nutcracker
Scrap Arts Music
Le Grand Cirque
The Amish Project
The Man Who Planted Trees
Mayhem Poets
The Adventures of Harold and the Purple Crayon |
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 Enchantment Theatre CompanyTuesday, October 27, 2009, 10:00am & 12:00pm Venue: State Theatre Program Length: 1 hour For Students in Grades: Pre-K-3 All Seats:$10 Using nothing more than a big purple crayon and a boundless imagination, young Harold creates his own fascinating worlds to explore. Enchantment Theatre brings the classic book series vividly to life onstage with life-size puppets, masks, magic, music, and dazzling stage effects. Come along with Harold on a wild ride as he jets off to Mars, joins a circus, and meets a king in an enchanted garden!
   Curriculum connections: language arts, drama, visual arts, music, science |
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MacHomer |
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 Wednesday, October 28, 2009, 10:30amThursday, October 29, 2009, 10:30am Friday, October 30, 2009, 10:30am Venue: Crossroads Theatre Program Length: 75 minutes For Students in Grades: 7-12 All Seats:$12 Imagine Shakespeare’s Macbeth performed in 75 minutes—by a single actor. Oh, and did we mention that all of the play’s characters are portrayed in the voices of over 50 characters from TV’s The Simpsons? An international sensation for over a decade, MacHomer is a must-see for fans of both high and low culture. This surprisingly faithful multimedia production employs a script that’s about 85% Shakespeare and 100% hilarious.
 Curriculum connections: language arts, social studies, drama |
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Wednesday, November 18, 2009, 10:30amThe Grapes of Wrath |
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 The Shakespeare Theatre of New JerseyMonday, November 23, 2009, 10:00am Venue: State Theatre Program Length: 2 hours 45 minutes For Students in Grades: 6-12 All Seats:$15 The story of Tom Joad and his family’s flight from the Dust Bowl of Oklahoma during America’s Great Depression is a deeply affecting portrait of American life at a defining moment in our history. John Steinbeck’s epic novel is brought to the stage in an enthralling full-length production by the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, hailed by The Wall Street Journal as “one of the best companies in the New York area.”
Curriculum connections: drama, social studies, language arts |
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The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Other Eric Carle Favorites |
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 Mermaid Theatre of Nova ScotiaMonday, December 07, 2009, 10:00am & 12:00pm Tuesday, December 08, 2009, 10:00am Venue: State Theatre Program Length: 1 hour For Students in Grades: Pre-K-3 All Seats:$10 A perennial favorite returns to the State Theatre. Mermaid Theatre’s magical production presents three of Eric Carle’s storybook tales, adapted for the stage with brilliant black-light puppetry, fanciful music, and the author’s original text. The Very Hungry Caterpillar is a counting story that depicts a caterpillar’s progress through a variety of foods and his eventual metamorphosis into a butterfly. In Little Cloud, the title character changes into the shapes of things he sees before rejoining his cloud family to make a rainstorm. The Mixed-Up Chameleon teaches children the importance of being true to oneself.
Curriculum connections: language arts, drama, visual arts, science, math |
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Graham Lustig's The Nutcracker |
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 American Repertory BalletFriday, December 18, 2009, 10:30am Venue: State Theatre Program Length: 90 minutes For Students in Grades: 4-12 All Seats:$12 In this classic holiday ballet, the gift of a beautiful nutcracker brings young Marie astonishing dreams of battling mice, enchanted forests, and the exotic Land of Sweets. Set to Tchaikovsky’s glittering score, The Nutcracker boasts spectacular costumes and scenic effects, inventive choreography, and a cast of more than one hundred performers! The American Repertory Ballet’s full-length production is a perfect introduction to the beauty and narrative power of dance.
Curriculum connections: dance, physical education, music, language arts, visual arts |
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Scrap Arts Music |
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 Friday, February 05, 2010, 10:30amVenue: State Theatre Program Length: 85 minutes For Students in Grades: 6-12 All Seats:$12 Founded by a percussion virtuoso with a talent for welding and a commitment to recycling and a designer with a passion for spectacle, Scrap Arts Music is a one-of-a-kind blend of intricate rhythms, raw energy, athletic choreography, and the greenest, most inventive reuse of materials on stage today. The group performs on more than 140 invented instruments crafted from industrial scrap—ranging from accordion parts to artillery shells. They deliver an adrenaline-laced power-percussion performance rooted in street performance, jazz, and world music traditions.
 Curriculum connections: music, visual arts, dance, environmental science, theater arts |
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Le Grand Cirque |
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 Friday, February 26, 2010, 10:30amVenue: State Theatre Program Length: 75 minutes For Students in Grades: 3-12 All Seats:$15 This spellbinding cirque-style show features a cast of over 50 world-class acrobats, jugglers, clowns, and high-wire artists from across the globe. Amazing feats of strength, balance, skill, and artistry are set off by stunning costumes, evocative music, and brilliant special effects. This is one production guaranteed to take your breath away!
Curriculum connections: theater arts, physical education, dance, music, visual arts |
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The Amish Project |
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 Tuesday, March 02, 2010, 10:30amWednesday, March 03, 2010, 10:30am Thursday, March 04, 2010, 10:30am Friday, March 05, 2010, 10:30am Venue: Crossroads Theatre Program Length: 75 minutes For Students in Grades: 6-12 All Seats:$10 On October 2, 2006, a lone gunman shot and killed five girls (aged 6-13) in a one-room Amish schoolhouse in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, then turned the gun on himself. The Amish community’s response to the tragedy—forgiveness and reconciliation—received as much media attention as the shootings themselves. In The Amish Project, playwright and performer Jessica Dickey has created a one-woman, fictional exploration of these true events that is imbued with poetry, humor, and wonder. Moving seamlessly back and forth among different characters (including the gunman, his widow, an Amish child, a news reporter, and a 16-year-old Hispanic girl), Dickey deftly weaves a complex and thought-provoking web of differing perspectives.
Click here to listen to Jessica Dickey talk about The Amish Project on WNYC.
Curriculum connections: drama, social studies, language arts |
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The Man Who Planted Trees |
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 Puppet State Theatre CompanyTuesday, March 16, 2010, 10:00am & 12:00pm Wednesday, March 17, 2010, 10:00am & 12:00pm Venue: Crossroads Theatre Program Length: 1 hour For Students in Grades: 2-6 All Seats:$9 A French shepherd sets out to plant a forest and transform a barren wasteland. Based on Jean Giono’s beloved short story, The Man Who Planted Trees shows us the difference one man (and his dog!) can make to the world. This award-winning, internationally acclaimed production from Scotland’s Puppet State Theatre Company is a unique blend of comedy, puppetry and inspired storytelling. Audiences will hear the wind, feel the rain, and smell the lavender in this multisensory theatrical delight.
Curriculum connections: drama, language arts, environmental science |
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Mayhem Poets |
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 Monday, April 19, 2010, 10:30amVenue: State Theatre Program Length: 75 min For Students in Grades: 7-12 All Seats:$10 They were completely sold out last season, so we’re bringing them back! Celebrate National Poetry Month with the extreme hip-hop energy of Mayhem Poets. These beat-boxing bards engage the audience as they boldly riff on the issues that rock our world—from Dr. Seuss to school to fast food. Their clever, eclectic rhymes and rapid-fire rhythms will inspire students with the power of poetic/theatrical expression. “[They] prove that with imagination, we can go anywhere. It's an amazing ride.” —The New York Times  Curriculum connections: language arts, social studies, drama |
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New Brunswick, NJ 08901
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