North American Premiere of From Here To There at Imagination Stage

Imagination Stage is thrilled to bring Natasha Holmes, director and cofounder of Tell Tale Hearts Children's Touring Theatre Company, all the way from the United Kingdom to mount a new production of From Here to There as part of the My First Imagination Stage season. This North American premiere will introduce Imagination Stage and its audiences to "free play" as an aspect of live performance.

From Here to There runs in Imagination Stage's Christopher and Dana Reeve Studio Theatre March 6-April 14 at 10:30 a.m. and 11:45 a.m. Appropriate for ages 2-5, tickets are $10-$12, with a $5 lap seat for children under 12 months. Tickets may be purchased online at www.imaginationstage.org, at the Imagination Stage box office, or via phone at 301-280-1660.

From Here to There, a play about building bridges, is a highly imaginative, visual, and creative piece of theatre involving puppetry, comedy, live music, and poetry. Using simple boxes, sonic tubes, and construction paper, two actors, who enjoy doing very different things, create a make believe world that bridges together their opposite interests. Performances are followed by a "free play" session, in which the actors invite the children to join them onstage to explore some of the materials and build their own bridges or towers.

"We met Natasha while attending a world conference on children's theatre in Copenhagen and were intrigued by this new trend in theatre for the very young of introducing free play as an aspect of the live performance," said Kate Bryer, Director of Early Childhood Theatre and Education and Associate Artistic Director. "We are excited to explore this concept with Natasha, who has already done much research and had much success in Britain and India with her interactive productions." 

While at Imagination Stage, Natasha will work with the artistic team to develop a brand new co-production to debut in Imagination Stage's 2013-14 season.

Tell Tale Hearts has been making theatre exclusively for children since 2003, becoming one of the most respected companies in the U.K. for creating theatre for the very young. The company presents participatory touring theatre productions, giving children the opportunity to experience a magical and multi-sensory world of theatre. From Here to There was created in collaboration with The Lawrence Batley Theatre (Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom).  It was piloted in Yorkshire in 2010 before touring throughout the U.K., Spain, and India.

Megan Dominy and Bradley Foster Smith will perform From Here to There. Megan previously portrayed Sister Bear in Imagination Stage's early childhood production Wake Up, Brother Bear! and has performed at many other local theatres, including Shakespeare Theatre Company, the Kennedy Center, Folger Theatre, and Constellation Theatre, among others. Bradley is making his debut at Imagination Stage after having performed locally at Keegan Theatre, First Stage, and American Century Theater.