JAMIE WANTS TO TAKE A BATH Opens This Week at Long Center

Central Texas' most well-known children's theatre company, Pollyanna Theatre, a resident company of the Long Center, presents Jamie Doesn't Want to Take a Bath - A Theatre Experience for Very Young Children by playwright Bethany Lynn Corey, March 31, April 2 and 6-9 at 9:30 and 11:00 am at the AT&T Conference Room the Long Center for the Performing Arts, 701 West Riverside, Austin, TX 78704.

Created to engage children as early as 18 months - 4 years of age, Jamie Doesn't Want to Take a Bath uses a visual theatre style performance and dramatic play right alongside the actors. It is classified as 'Theatre for the Very Young' (TVY) - an umbrella term to describe a variety of theatre work and practices intentionally designed for children under the age of six.

While TVY is widely performed in Europe and Australia, it has only begun to appear in the US within the past 10 years, and Pollyanna Theatre Company is the first to bring it to the Central Texas region.

Judy Matetzschk-Campbell, Ph.D., Founder and Artistic Director of Pollyanna Theatre is thrilled to produce this type of theatre for Austin's youngest audiences. "Traditionally, Pollyanna patrons are slightly older and more developmentally ready to be audience members who participate by using their imaginations but not their voices or bodies. Younger children, ages 2 - 4, learn through actively playing. So this newest series of productions provides a bridge for them to merge their natural instincts for dramatic play with a story that invites them to participate. It is a true hybrid of creative drama and theatre for young audiences. For many of these children, it will be their first exposure to a formal theatre experience. We are so excited that they will have this very first audience time with Pollyanna Theatre."

In this new play, Jamie's mother is surprised when suddenly, the night before Jamie's first day at pre-school, she simply refuses to take her bath. Young audience members will watch while Jamie's mother tries all sorts of things to get her into the tub and to bed on time. The play presents a fun and tender tug of war that many children and caregivers will recognize. Jamie Doesn't Want To Take A Bath invites Pollyanna's youngest audience members to play along with Jamie and learn what it is to be an audience member all at the same time.

The playwright, Corey, has an extensive background in both Drama and Education and is currently a Drama Specialist for the Creative Learning Initiative in the Austin Independent School District and also served as an Early Learning Manager for the Thinkery, the Children's Museum in Austin, focused on STEAM education.

When it comes to her process, she says, "I focus on creating an immersive experience, a world with childlike characters going on a journey of some sort. Having worked with early learners as an educator I think about what young children know and where they are developmentally as I craft a story. I find discovery, especially the sheer joy in experimenting with a new object, to be one of the most exciting parts of a young child's world. So I always include lots of opportunities to explore and discover within the pieces I create."

In addition to public performances, Jamie Doesn't Want to Take a Bath is also available for schools, daycare centers and camps throughout Central Texas.

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