The Bloom of Youth
The Children's Theatre of Cincinnati is going back in time and moving into the future with their plans to rescue, renovate, and reimagine the iconic Emery Theater.
“This project is of vital importance to our community for so many reasons,” says Kim Kern, Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati’s managing director and CEO. “First, providing a permanent home for the nation's oldest professional theatre for young audiences, but also restoring an iconic venue while honoring Mary Emery’s wishes of keeping it a place of gathering and education. TCT’s future home will continue to revitalize our city’s core – keeping Cincinnati a place where people wish to live, work, and play.”
The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati (TCT) is planning to purchase the Emery Theater and, using 21st century technology, transform it into a unique venue that will make a lasting impact on more than 100,000 children and families who attend their MainStage productions each year.
What TCT envisions is not simply a restoration, but a reinvention of the theater into a modern and memorable venue equipped with the latest technology that inspires and teaches diverse audiences. TCT’s plans to incorporate the most modern technology, stage lifts and projection mapping will enliven the audience experience and overcome backstage and wing limitations. Through this remarkable technology and planned expanded programming, TCT will revitalize an icon, return to its original home, and put Cincinnati on the map as a family theatrical destination.
TCT 2023–24 Season
The SpongeBob Musical: Youth Edition
Oct. 14–23
The stakes are higher than ever in this dynamic stage musical, as SpongeBob and all of Bikini Bottom face the total annihilation of their undersea world. Chaos erupts. Lives hang in the balance. And just when all hope seems lost, a most unexpected hero rises up and takes center stage. The power of optimism really can save the world.
NARNIA The Musical
Dec. 9 - 18,
Narnia The Musical tells of four English schoolchildren – brothers and sisters – sent away from London during World War II to stay in the manor house of their uncle – who stumble upon (and through) a wardrobe into the magical kingdom of Narnia, held in the power of the White Witch, whose evil spell has frozen the land, so that it is “always winter – and never Christmas.”
Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella: Youth Edition
Feb. 17–26, 2024
The timeless enchantment of a magical fairy tale is reborn with the Rodgers & Hammerstein hallmarks of originality, charm, and elegance. As adapted for the stage, with great warmth and more than a touch of hilarity, this enthralling fairy tale still warms the hearts of children and adults alike.
Disney’s Finding Nemo JR.
April 20–29, 2024
Explore the big blue world with this lively new stage musical based on the beloved Pixar film! This 60-minute musical adaptation of the beloved 2003 movie features new music by award-winning songwriting team Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez.
Tickets and information at thechildrenstheatre.com/future-shows.
This move will allow TCT to expand its annual production schedule beyond the 40 days currently allowed within their home in the Taft Theatre, enabling the theater to expand their programming and produce more original works.
“Restoring the Emery for theatrical use has long been a challenge,” says GBBN associate principal, Steve Karoly. “Because the size and configuration of the stage was originally designed for an orchestra, it did not have the depth or wing space of a traditional theatrical stage. We had to develop some innovative solutions—such as using a large video screen at the back of the stage to create depth and using a large lift to access the basement for quick scene changes—to overcome that challenge.”
It will also preserve a rare, theater-style, symphonic concert hall – one of only four in the United States – that has hosted the likes of George Gershwin, Bette Davis, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Working within the constraints of a historic theater like this has been really rewarding,” says GBBN Director of Arts, Marcene Kinney. “This will not only be a space that weaves together different historical moments, but it will also be a space that welcomes children. So, the design is really embracing whimsy and illusion as we create a fully immersive environment that brings the magic of the theater beyond the bounds of the stage.”
Celebrating 103 years this season, TCT is the only professional theater in the region that devotes its entire MainStage season to children. Its mission is to educate, entertain and engage audiences of all ages through professional theatrical productions and arts education programming. Its vision is to awaken a lifelong love of theater in children and the young at heart.
Learn more at https://thechildrenstheatre.com/the-emery/
