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| CST's Beauty and the Beast |
In the last two weeks, I've taken 7-year-old Zoe and nearly 5-year-old Ada to a professional production of Disney's Beauty and the Beast, a high school production of Footloose and middle school production of Disney's The Little Mermaid, Jr.
We're lucky to live in Oak Park, where the talent pool runs deep and the arts programs are really great. The fact that we're virtually guaranteed to see a babysitter, neighbor or family friend in every show is a bonus.
OPRF's Footloose was solid--probably better than anything my high school drama program put on--but plagued by sound issues and not as good as past productions I've attended (like Annie and Fame). The Little Mermaid, Jr., on the other hand, was stupendeous. I don't know where they find these kids, but they can really sing and dance! You'll have to take my word for it because I saw the last show, a last-minute matinee added after every single performance sold out online.
What you can see--if your kids are as into musicals as we are--is the Chicago Shakespeare Theater's Beauty and the Beast, which is at Navy Pier through the summer. The rich-looking stage production is faithful to the film and the small cast is big on talent. Both of my girls were spellbound by the show, even when it was difficult to hear the dialogue over the screaming 1 year old seated next to us.
I'm ready to start researching our next show, but until then, the girls know how to listen to (and sing along with!) Broadway musical tracks on a Pandora station we created expressly for that purpose.
I'm ready to start researching our next show, but until then, the girls know how to listen to (and sing along with!) Broadway musical tracks on a Pandora station we created expressly for that purpose.
