Educational Programs

LEARN WITH US!

SUMMER DAY CAMPS

Come play and discover your inner artist through these exciting drama classes! Learning through theatre teaches students how to work together, problem solve, and use their imaginations.

ACTION STORYTIME

In this delightful offering for our youngest learners, students will have the opportunity to learn theatre fundamentals and problem-solving skills through movements, storytelling, and literacy. Every student will leave with a new book!

Session 1

The Prince and the Witch and the Thief and the Bears by Alastair Chisholm Ages 3-5 / July 12 /1 0am-12pm / Class Tuition: $40

Session 2

Dragon Post by Emma Yarlett Ages 3-5 / July 26 / 10am-12pm / Class Tuition: $40

PUPPETRY

In this new and exciting offering, students will learn to create, voice, and animate multiple types of puppets. The final day will culminate in a performance for friends and family of an alloriginal puppet show! Ages 6-9 /July 12-15 /10am-4pm Class Tuition: $200

MUSICAL THEATRE

Learn what it takes to sing, dance, and act for Musical Theatre! Our professional team of teaching artists will guide students as they work to become triple threats in this fan-favorite offering! Ages 9-13 / July 19-22 /10am-4pm Class Tuition: $200

BOOMTOWN JR. (IMPROVISATION)

Do you love watching Boomtown! and Pants on Fire!? Then this is the camp for you! Say “Yes, and” to this exciting offering that teaches students fundamental improv skills. Ages 13+ / July 26-29 /10am-4pm Class Tuition: $200

ADULT PLAYWRITING

Have you ever wondered what it takes to write the next great theatrical masterpiece? Work with our professional team of playwrights to develop a new play or refine a story that’s been in your imagination for years. Ages 18 + / August 2-5 / 5:30pm-8pm Class Tuition: $100

CAMPS FILL UP QUICKLY!

Register today to reserve your spot. Visit creederep.org/education or give us a call at (719) 658-2540. To apply for financial assistance, please contact Education Director Brittni Shambaugh Addison at brittni@creedere.com.

2022 Young Audience Outreach Tour CASA ALFONSA

Book & Lyrics by Diana Grisanti • Music by Emiliano Messiez Directed by Ismael Lara Jr. • Choreographed by Bethany Eilean Talley

DIRECTOR’S NOTE

Ismael Lara, Jr. As I write this note, it is a day after my Momo Nides’ (maternal grandmother, Leonides Nevarez Garcia) birthday. She would have been 79 years old, but ALS took her away from us in 2009. The most beautiful things about her were her infectious laughter and her love for sharing food. She constantly and graciously extended the invitation for family to commune around her table, to be fed with homemade tortillas and laughter. In a Mexican family, we often use food as a way to express love; it is very much a love language. This love is manifested in the hours, care, and patience it takes to prepare food and the gift of passing on the secret touch it takes to carry on the legacy of a recipe. In Casa Alfonsa, we are met with the loss of a matriarch. A loss that I’ve experienced and one that I fear every day as my fraternal grandmother, Abuelita Maria, soars through her 90s. Losing Alfonsa, aka Mamá Poncha, puts a spotlight on her legacy and the need to keep her alive through her Tortillas de Maíz. When one child loses sense of tradition and another is clinging onto it, the necessity to keep Mamá Poncha alive creates a sibling conflict that only the younger generation can heal. It is this younger generation that helps the elders understand the importance of forgiveness and what it means to keep the beautiful legacy of our ancestors alive. This is not unlike what I believe to be happening in our country at this very moment. We are in the hands of a younger generation, who are healing generational trauma and undoing the harm that has been caused before them in order to build a better future.

CREATIVE TEAM

Director Ismael Lara Jr. Book and Lyrics Diana Grisanti Composer Emiliano Messiez Choreographer Bethany Eilean Talley Scenic Design Lisa Duncan Costume Design Jill Van Brussel Sound Design Jenni Harbour

MANAGEMENT

Tour Manager Sky Bradley Tour Manager Storm Dolente

CAST

Brandon Guzman Angelika Menendez

Felix Torrez Brenda Ortiz Flores

SUPPORTED BY

Dane G Hansen Foundation Krueger Charitable Foundation Clarence V. Laguardia Foundation National Endowment for the Arts Robert Hoag Rawlings Foundation

Developed under CRT’s Headwaters New Play Program.

CELEBRATING 39 YEARS OF BRINGING EXCELLENT BILINGUAL MUSICAL THEATRE TO SCHOOLS ACROSS THE SOUTHWEST AND BEYOND!

Creede Rep’s Young Audience Outreach Tour (YAOT) is one of the largest providers of educational theatre in the rural Southwest, serving over 31,000 children. YAOT’s mission is to bring high quality musical theatre to young audiences in rural and historically neglected communities by annually producing an original children’s show that tours throughout CO, NM, UT, AZ, OK, TX, and KS.

Literacy Empowers Our Youth!

To support your community’s literacy endeavors, each student receives a free original children’s book after the show. These books reinforce the themes of the study guide and play, while making reading exciting!