The NiA Company's BR'ER RABBIT Hops Back on the Stage at Columbia Children's Theatre Today

After a well-received limited engagement run in October of 2013, Columbia Children's Theatre (CCT), is thrilled to welcome Columbia's NiA Company and their production of Br'er Rabbit back onto the Mainstage today, June 12, through June 21.

Show times are Friday June 12 at 7:00 p.m.; Saturdays (June 13 & 20) at 10:30 a.m., 2:00 p.m., and 7:00 p.m.; and Sundays (June 14 & 21) at 3:00 p.m. All shows are held at Columbia Children's Theatre on the 2nd level of Richland Mall, 3400 Forest Drive. Tickets are $10.00 for children three years of age through adult and $8.00 for seniors and active military with ID. The 7:00 p.m. performances on Saturday evenings will have a special price of $5.00 for everyone. Advance tickets can be purchased online at www.columbiachildrenstheatre.com. For more information contact CCT at 803-691-4548.

About the Production

NiA brings a surprising new take to the beloved Br'er Rabbit Tales. Full of smart comedy and hilarious characters, the antics of Br'er Rabbit and his cohorts are delightfully clever and cunning - much like Br'er Rabbit himself. Incorporating African drumming, music, and audience participation, this 50-minute production will have audiences rolling in the floor and cheering along. The name "Br'er Rabbit", short for "Brother Rabbit", has its origins in both West African and Cherokee cultures. His South African trickster counterpart, Anansi the Spider, often finds himself in some of the very same predicaments as Brother Rabbit. Both Cherokee and Algonquin cultures abound with tales of "the Trickster Rabbit" and "The Great Hare" who use their wits to overcome adversity. "There are great and meaningful lessons we can all take away from these stories," said NiA Founder and Artistic Director Darion McCloud. "The necessity of having to sometimes resort to extreme behaviors in extreme circumstances can be summed up in the African proverb, 'It's trouble that makes the monkey chew on hot peppers!'"

The cast of Br'er Rabbit features the delightful Bonita Peeples, last seen on the CCT stage as Puss in Puss in Boots, reprising her role as the erasable bunny, NiA Artistic Director, Darion McCloud as Anansi, and Heather McCue as Br'er Tiger and Sister Moon. The role of Br'er Lion will be played by Clark Wallace and Michael Clark, while Br'er Bear will be played by Charlie Goodrich and H. Loretta Brown. Mr. Man and The Tar Baby will be played by Jimmy Wall, Julian Deleon & Charlie Goodrich.

"After 2012's successful presentation of NiA's Holla, and the 2013 limited engagement run of Br'er Rabbit," said CCT Artistic Director Jerry Stevenson "we are thrilled to once again be bringing NiA's boundary-pushing unique brand of live theatre to the CCT stage in this hilarious production."

Founded in 1998, the NiA Company made its debut performance at the Richland County Public Library to a standing-room only audience. NiA - Swahili for purpose - is a most appropriate name for this small but determined theatre company dedicated to performance with purpose and meaning. That purpose is to educate, inform, and empower the community-at-large by bringing artistic programs to non-traditional theatre-goers such as minorities, at-risk youth and the economically-challenged.

Columbia Children's Theatre is a professional resident not-for-profit theatre dedicated to providing quality live theatre experiences for families and young audiences, and is supported in part by the City of Forest Acres, The Cultural Council of Richland and Lexington Counties and the South Carolina Arts Commission, which receives funding from the National Endowment for the Arts.

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