Berkshire Theatre Group Announces BTGPLAYS! 2013-14 School Year Events

Berkshire Theatre Group has announced the 2013-2014 programming and events for BTGPLAYS!, BTG's educational program. This program is a fundamental component of the BTG's mission to serve the community and serves area students from kindergarten through high school. At the heart of the program is a passionate commitment to bring Live Theatre and all its inherent excitement and creativity to children in the region and reaches over 17,000 student each year.

BTG's touring production, The Emperor's New Clothes, is adapted from the classic tale by Hans Christen Andersen by E. Gray Simons III and directed by Travis G. Daly who also directed this past summer's community production of Peter Pan and co-directs this season's A Christmas Carol. The production will run until the end of May 2014 touring to schools in Berkshire County and other local venues including The Eric Carle Museum in Amherst and the Berkshire Museum in Pittsfield. This production is appropriate for elementary and middle school and is designed to introduce students to the excitement of Live Theatre. A question and answer session with the actors follows each performance.

BTG PLAYS! Fall In-School Playwriting Residency engages students in the art of playwriting at local schools including: Kittredge Elementary School in Hinsdale, MA for 5th grade classes, Farmington River Elementary School in Otis, MA for 6th grade classes, and Richmond Consolidated School in Richmond, MA for 6th grade classes and will conclude with student performances in January 2014.

BTG PLAYS! After School Programs allows students with a variety of learning styles to discover the fundamentals of theatre production, acting, and storytelling while exploring a classic myth or fairy tale. The after school programs are held at area Pittsfield schools including: Egremont Elementary School, Conte Community School, Reid Middle School, and Herberg Middle School.

Both the after school programs and the playwriting residencies are led by new artist-in-residence, Maddie Calandrillo with returning artists, Jacob Gold, Corey Cavenaugh and artistic associate, Travis G. Daly. The programs are 14-weeks and intended to be a hands-on kinesthetic learning experience that celebrates each young person and the uniqueness of his/her artistic voice. The final weeks of BTG PLAYS! are filled with the excitement generated by the rehearsal and production of staged readings of selected student written plays at each school for parents and peers.

For the 2013-2014 school year, BTG will host five performing arts productions at the Colonial: Aladdin and Other Enchanting Tales; A Christmas Carol; Doktor Kaboom! It's Just Rocket Science; Leo Lionni's Swimmy, Fredrick, & Inch by Inch; and The Very Hungry Caterpillar. School field trips to our theaters and in-school programs allow students to experience diverse, educational and entertaining, programs that reinforce classroom curriculum, while fostering an understanding of and appreciation for the performing arts!

For the second year, BTG will work with teens from Pittsfield's Juvenile Resource Center on using theatre skills to build confidence, life skills and communication ability. Students will train to be assistant teachers/mentors for children in BTG playwriting residencies and after school programming in addition to working in various areas of theatre administration.

"We are so thrilled that the kids in the community have this opportunity to enjoy, learn, and create theatre in a fun, educational environment and are able experience the magic of the performing arts first hand," said Allison Rachele Bayles, Administrative Director of Education at BTG. "It excites me to see the kids learning about the fundamentals of theatre all while having a great time and exploring the arts."

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