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A Victory For Children’s Theater
A Victory For Children’s Theater
“Mother Africa,” shown above, is just one of the exciting new attractions from New Victory’s upcoming season.
No One Pushes The Potential Of Theater For Young Audiences Like New Victory— And This Season Even Babies And Toddlers Can Enjoy The Experience By Stacey Gawronski The New Victory Theater offices, on West 42nd Street in the epicenter of Times Square, are colorful and vibrant in a way that seems naturally fitting given the theater’s ambitious mission and diverse line-up of performances for the 2013-14 season. A “presenting house” (as opposed to a traditional “theater” company that produces its own work), New Victory handpicks shows that promise to appeal to a wide range of children while still entertaining the adults who accompany them. As Mary Rose Lloyd, the Artistic Programming Director, says, they offer multi-faceted work for a multi-faceted audience. The theater’s long-standing leadership team, which includes President Cora Cahan and Vice President Lisa Post in addition to Llyod, are deeply passionate about its special niche in the world of children’s theater. The hallmarks of a New Victory season are shows that are at once sophisticated and accessible, containing culturally rich, often globally sourced material that is a lot of fun. This season everything from movement, music, and marionettes to circus, cabaret, and Shakespeare will hit the stage—
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New York Family | October 2013
“Baby Rave” is sure to captivate young audiences.
not to mention an all-new baby rave. “What we’re seeking always is to break the mold in terms of what we put on the stage without it being too violent or erotic,” Cahan says. As head of programming, Lloyd spends a big part of her job traveling the world to discover shows that are right for the theater. Her hope is that their constantly evolving roster of engaging programming will inspire “empathetic souls [who] will grow up to be running the world.” Whatever their future brings, this much we can confidently tell you about New Victory’s young patrons: They really like the shows, and the adventure of coming to a theater in the middle of Broadway and Times Square is the icing on the cake. The mix of shows presented in the 2013-23014 season reflects the venue’s commitment to variety: their big holiday show, “Mother Africa,” melds circus arts with dance and music and traditional masks, highlighting performers from several African countries; www.newyorkfamily.com