ALLIANCE THEATRE ANNOUNCES ITS WORLD PREMIERE PRODUCTION
THE DANCING GRANNY
INSPIRED BY THE CHILDREN’S BOOK BY BELOVED ILLUSTRATOR AND AUTHOR ASHLEY BRYAN, ADAPTED BY PLAYWRIGHT JIRÉH BREON HOLDER
THE DANCING GRANNY WILL BE PERFORMED AT OGLETHORPE UNIVERSITY, THE GALLOWAY SCHOOL, AND SPELMAN COLLEGE WHILE THE ALLIANCE THEATRE’S PERFORMANCE SPACES UNDERGO A COMPLETE RENOVATION
The Alliance Theatre is pleased to announce its upcoming world premiere production, The Dancing Granny. Based on the children’s book by Newbery Honor winner Ashley Bryan, The Dancing Granny comes to life with exciting music and movement in this family-friendly, one-act production, at three locations June 10 – July 16, 2017.
At a young age, children’s book author and artist Ashley Bryan noticed a lack of children’s books with African American characters. Bryan has been committed to filling that void in black representation by creating books about the African and African American experiences for 50 years. His books include a dizzying array of styles that reflect a wide variety of influences, from African folktales to jazz and poetry. Bryan’s works include The Dancing Granny, Beautiful Blackbird, Beat the Story-Drum, Sail Away and his 2016 book Freedom Over Me, which was awarded the Newbery Honor, the Coretta Scott King Author Honor, and the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor.
In The Dancing Granny, Ananse, the clever spider of African folklore, tries to trick Granny into dancing away from her garden so he can take her vegetables. But his plan backfires when he is drawn into the dance himself!
The Dancing Granny is being adapted for the stage by Jiréh Breon Holder, 2017 winner of the Alliance/Kendeda National Graduate Playwriting Competition for his play Too Heavy for Your Pocket. The Dancing Granny will be directed by Leora Morris, the Alliance Yale Directing Fellow. The creative team also includes Sound Designer Clay Benning, Costume Designer Jeff Cone, Puppet Designer Carole D’Agostino, Choreographer Ameenah Kaplan, Lighting Designer Ken Yunker, and Set Designer Christopher Thompson.
The cast for The Dancing Granny includes Akumba Bynum-Roberson (dancer, drummer, and actor) as Sun, Ameenah Kaplan (musician, choreographer, actor whose credits include TV’s The Office) as the Dancing Granny, Chani Maisonet (singer, dancer, actor whose credits include Simply Simone and In the Heights at Theatrical Outfit/Aurora Theatre) as Wind, Breanna Ross (dancer, actor) as Earth, and Benjamin DeWitt Sims as Spider/Old Man.
In conjunction with this production, the High Museum of Art will present Painter and Poet: The Wonderful World of Ashley Bryan (April 1, 2017 – January 21, 2018) featuring more than 70 original artworks from 20 of his books, including dynamic ink drawings from The Dancing Granny and colorful cut-paper collages from Beautiful Blackbird. Also on view is a selection of paintings from Bryan’s powerful new title and Newbury Honor winner, Freedom Over Me.
PERFORMANCE LOCATIONS, DATES, & TIMES:
Oglethorpe University, Conant Performing Arts Center
4484 Peachtree Road, NE, Atlanta, GA 30319
Saturday, June 10, 11:00 a.m.; Sunday, June 11, 1:00 p.m. & 3:30 p.m.; Tuesday – Friday, June 13 – 16, 10:00 a.m. & 11:45 a.m.; Saturday, June 17, 11:00 a.m. & 1:00 p.m.; and Sunday, June 18, 1:00 p.m. & 3:30 p.m.
The Galloway School
215 W. Wieuca Road, NW, Atlanta, GA 30342
Saturday, June 24, 11:00 a.m. & 1:00 p.m.; Sunday, June 25, 1:00 p.m. & 3:30 p.m.; Tuesday – Friday, June 27 – 30, 10:00 a.m. & 11:45 a.m.; Saturday, July 1, 11:00 a.m. & 1:00 p.m.; and Sunday, July 2, 1:00 p.m. & 3:30 p.m.
Spelman College, Rockefeller Fine Arts Building, Baldwin Burroughs Theater
420 Westview Drive SW, Atlanta, GA 30310
Saturday, July 8, 11:00 a.m. & 1:00 p.m.; Sunday, July 9, 1:00 p.m. & 3:30 p.m.; Tuesday – Friday, July 11 – 14, 10:00 a.m. & 11:45 a.m.; July 15, 11:00 a.m. & 1:00 p.m.; July 16, 1:00 p.m. & 3:30 p.m.
TICKET INFORMATION
Individual tickets for The Dancing Granny are $15 for adults, $8 for children 6 – 17, and FREE for children 5 and under. Tickets for The Dancing Granny are available at The Woodruff Arts Center Box Office, by calling 404.733.5000, or online atwww.alliancetheatre.org/granny.
GROUP DISCOUNTS
Groups of 10+ receive discounts on the price of tickets and are not charged for box office fees. 404.733.4690
MILITARY DISCOUNTS
The Alliance thanks military families with 15% off regularly priced tickets to Alliance Stage and Hertz Stage productions. Military ID must be shown when picking up or ordering tickets at the Box Office. This offer is based on availability and cannot be combined with other offers.
$10 TEEN TICKETS
Any middle school or high school student can attend any performance for just $10. Look for the “teen” price when selecting your seats online. A valid/current student ID must be presented when picking up tickets at will call. Not all seating sections are available with this offer. A maximum of 4 tickets per order may be purchased with this discount.
TICKETS FOR TEACHERS
Tickets for Teachers is a unique program that provides educators with valid teachers ID free tickets for select early performances of all Alliance Theatre productions. Performances offered for The Dancing Granny are – 6/10, 11:00 a.m.; 6/11, 1:00 p.m.; 6/24, 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.; 6/25, 1:00 p.m.; 7/8,
11:00 a.m. & 1:00 p.m.; 7/9, 1:00 p.m. Restrictions apply. Visit www.alliancetheatre.org/ticketsforteachers for details.
See all discounts and special offers here - http://alliancetheatre.org/content/ticket-discounts
The Dancing Granny is part of the Delta Family Series.
Additional Sponsors: The Dancing Granny is sponsored by The Coca-Cola Company and The Home Depot.
This production of
The Dancing Granny
is made possible with grants from the City of Atlanta Office of Cultural Affairs, the Fulton County Board of Commissioners, the Georgia Council for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
