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Like Magic: Walden Family Playhouse Casts a Spell Douglas Love, the aptly named guiding light of Walden Family Playhouse, couldn't be happier with the way things are going at the new children's theater at Colorado Mills. Available tickets are disappearing like magic as Walden's second full production, Merlin's Apprentice , draws to a close this week. "We're becoming the hottest ticket in town for families," Love says. "And so many people coming out of the show are then buying tickets for the next two shows of the season on the spot." That's enough evidence to convince Love that he's reaching his goal of introducing young audiences to theatrical experience -- and then making sure they stay interested. Since Walden raised the curtain less than two months ago, tens of thousands of metro-area kids have seen Walden shows, both with school groups and with their families, many of them attending with tickets subsidized by businesses participating in the theater's Gift of Imagination program. For Love, it's the proverbial dream come true. There's a reason, of course, that shows like Merlin are eliciting such a grand response: They're good shows, with high-profile casts and Walden's touted state-of-the-art sets. And Merlin , which ends Sunday, May 4 (the Japan-inspired Kabuki Gift opens next, on May 13), has proven itself a particular crowd favorite. An unexpectedly high volume of audience interaction has been inspired by the tale of a magician who's lost his powers and the twelve-year-old girl, Abigail, who saves his butt. "She uses her love of science and nature to get them in and out of scrapes," explains Walden's Ronda Berkeley. "And it's a sort of a girl-empowerment thing. It's just a hoot when the kids in the audience side with the girl and shout out encouragement." It helps to have a main character played by a real twelve-year-old girl (actually, two young actresses, Leigh Joseph and Sarah Zanotti, both of whom were selected during a talent search in the Mills food court). "It's like the audience members are seeing themselves on stage," notes Berkeley, adding that the play appeals to a much broader demographic than just preteen females. Last call: If you haven't yet experienced Walden's unique brand of magic, performances of Merlin's Apprentice are at 10 and noon weekdays and 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday in the United Artist Theatre Complex at Colorado Mills, 14500 West Colfax Avenue, Lakewood; tickets are $14 to $16. Call 720-932-7578 or log on to www.waldenfamilyplayhouse.com. -- Susan Froyd May 1, 2003 Westword < back to News |
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