Current Touring Productions
Goodnight Moon & The Runaway Bunny
Stories by Margaret Wise Brown,
Illustrated by Clement Hurd
Fall 2009/Winter 2010
Adapted by Jim Morrow
Director/Production Designer: Jim Morrow
Composer: Steven Naylor
Narrator: Deborah Allen
Performers: Struan Robertson, Kaitlin Morrow, Seann Murray
Stage Manager: Tracy Lynne Cann
Associate Designers: Jonathan Ford, Deborah MacLean
Video Design: Windoverdaun Films
Animation: Bob Williams
Lighting Designer: Leigh Anne Vardy
About Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia:
Based in Windsor, Nova Scotia, Mermaid Theatre's unique adaptations of children's literature have delighted more than four million young people on four continents. Founded in 1972, the company ranks among North America's most respected theatres for the young, and has won widespread recognition for its important ambassadorial role. Mermaid regularly crosses North America, and has represented Canada in Japan, Mexico, Australia, England, Northern Ireland, Holland, Scotland, Wales, Hong Kong, Macau, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and Vietnam. Mermaid has earned Export Excellence Awards from both Nova Scotia and the Government of Canada (2001, 2005) in recognition for contributions to culture and the economy, and in 2008 received the Crystal Ambassador Award by the Tourism Industry of Nova Scotia. The company performs for 200,000 spectators annually, and is currently one of Canada’s most active touring organizations.
About the Production:
Goodnight Moon is a celebration of familiar nighttime rituals, while The Runaway Bunny’s pretend tale of leaving home evokes reassuring responses from his loving mum. Both feature endearing rabbit characters, and the soothing rhythms of bunny banter and dream-like imagery never fail to infuse young readers with a reassuring sense of security. Mermaid’s staged adaptation brings a new sense of appreciation to stories that have delighted several generations.
About the Author:
Few writers have been as attuned to the concerns and emotions of childhood as Margaret Wise Brown (1910–1952). Brown, a former teacher, believed that very young children could be fascinated by the simple pleasures of the world around them. Few had previously attempted to write specifically for children aged two to five, and Brown created some of the most enduring and beloved children’s books of all time as well as developed the concept of the first durable board book.
About the Illustrator:
Clement Hurd (1908–1988) graduated from Yale University and studied painting in Paris in the 1930s with Fernand Léger and others. His engaging semi-abstract style became world-famous with the publication in 1942 of THE RUNAWAY BUNNY and GOODNIGHT MOON in 1947 - collaborations with Brown that became two of the 20th Century’s best-known children’s books.
About the Creative Team:
Jim Morrow, Director/Production Designer
Jim creates puppets for stage, television and film. He's directed numerous shows for the Theatre, including Borrowed Black, Goodnight Opus, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Guess How Much I Love You & I Love My Little Storybook, and Swimmy, Frederick & Inch by Inch and has designed many others. A gifted performer, Jim has toured extensively in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Japan. He serves as director of puppetry for Symphony Nova Scotia's production of The Nutcracker, and frequently conducts master classes in puppetry in North America and abroad. Jim is Mermaid Theatre’s Artistic Director.
Steven Naylor, Composer
Steven has created the music for more than a dozen Mermaid shows, including Stuart Little, Just So Stories, Gulliver's Travels, Very Eric Carle, The Very Hungry Caterpillar & Other Eric Carle Favourites, Guess How Much I Love You & I Love My Little Storybook, and Swimmy, Frederick & Inch by Inch. His many other professional activities include original film and television scores; contemporary music and 'musique actuelle' performance; university teaching and curriculum development; and a long-term international involvement with electroacoustic concert music. Steven is Mermaid Theatre's Artistic Consultant for Music and Sound Design.
Deborah Allen, Narrator
Deborah began her theatrical career in Halifax, NS as Neptune Theatre’s first apprentice in 1965. Since then she has made a successful career as an actor, director, producer, radio broadcaster and voice specialist. Deb toured with Mermaid Theatre’s production of The Journey in 1974, which played to First Nations communities throughout Nova Scotia. Since that time she has had extensive experience in theatre; film/television and radio. Deb has lent her voice to countless documentaries for the National Film Board and TVO; commercials and museum installations. Among her very favorite narrations would have to be for those little people in her family.
Leigh Ann Vardy, Lighting Designer
Based in Nova Scotia, Leigh Ann designs lights for major theatres across Canada. Most recently, she's worked at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, Neptune Theatre, The National Arts Centre, Soulpepper Theatre, Centaur Theatre, and Manitoba Theatre Centre. Leigh Ann toured extensively with Jest in Time Theatre throughout the United States and Japan, and with Mulgrave Road Theatre to New Zealand. She has received four Merritt Awards for Design and was nominated for Canada's prestigious Siminovitch Prize. When not designing, Leigh Ann teaches at the National Theatre School. This is Leigh Ann's first design assignment with Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia.
About the Company:
Struan Robertson, Performer
Born and raised in Nova Scotia, Struan earned his Bachelor of Arts with Honours in Drama and Fine Arts at Bishop’s University in Quebec. He was the co-founder of Theatre Expansion, a company that provided theatre workshops and performances for people who were learning to speak English. Struan undertook intensive training offered by Mermaid Theatre’s Institute of Puppetry Arts, and toured Maritime Region schools and museums with the Institute’s production of Code Green. Prior to his engagement as a puppeteer with Goodnight Moon and The Runaway Bunny, he worked with the Theatre’s Production Department to build the show’s puppets and props.
Kaitlin Morrow, Performer
Kaitlin a native of the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia, grew up surrounded by the art of puppetry. She recently completed her studies at George Brown College's Performing Arts program in Toronto, and undertook specialized training with the Mermaid Institute of Puppetry Art’s ANIMOTION program. She joined Mermaid Theatre in the Summer of 2009.
Seann Murray, Performer
Seann was born and raised in Fredericton, New Brunswick, where he began his theatrical career with Theatre UNB and the NotaBle Acts theatre festival. After touring the Fringe with New Brunswick’s Theatre Free Radical, he moved to Toronto to enter the George Brown College Performing Arts program. While in Toronto, he was active in the local theatre scene, working with Soulpepper Theatre Company, Stagecraft Company and the Impatient Theatre Company. Seann joined Mermaid Theatre in the Summer of 2009 after completing specialized training with the Mermaid Institute of Puppetry Art’s ANIMOTION program.
Tracy Lynne Cann, Stage Manager
Tracy is originally from Scarborough, Ontario and a graduate of the theatre program at Brock University. Selected credits include: Stage Manager for Robin Hood (Stirling Festival Theatre), Agokwe (Buddies in Bad Times Theatre), Menopause Out Loud! (G Four Productions), The Shape of a Girl (Sudbury Theatre Centre); A Dickens of a Christmas (Canadian Children's Opera Chorus); Production Coordinator for Stars on Spadina (Al Green Theatre); and Production Manager/Technical Director for the East Coast Tour of You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown (Tribal Productions). Tracy has also trained and worked at The Banff Centre for the Performing Arts and the Canadian Opera Company. Tracy joined Mermaid in May 2009 when she took over the stage manager position close to the end of the first tour of Goodnight Moon.
Adapted with permission:
Goodnight Moon Copyright (c) 1947 by Harper & Row. Text (c) renewed 1975 by Roberta Brown Rauch. Illustrations (c) renewed 1975 by Edith Hurd, Clement Hurd, John Thacher Hurd and George Hellyer, as Trustees of the Edith & Clement Hurd 1982 Trust.
The Runaway Bunny Copyright (c) 1942 by Harper & Row Publishers. Text copyright renewed 1970 by Roberta Brown Rauch. Illustrations copyright (c) 1972 by Edith T. Hurd, Clement Hurd, John Thacher Hurd, and George Hellyer as Trustees of the Edith and Clement Hurd 1982 Trust.
Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia is represented by
KIDS’ ENTERTAINMENT
For booking information, please contact them at:
19 Charlotte Street, Suite 404
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5V 2H5
Tel: (416) 971 4836 Fax: (416) 971 4841
email: info@kidsentertainment.net
website: www.kidsentertainment.net
For general information, please contact:
Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia
P.O. Box 2697
Windsor, Nova Scotia Canada B0N 2T0
Tel: (902) 798 5841 Fax: (902) 798 3311
email: puppets@mermaidtheatre.ns.ca
website: www.mermaidtheatre.ns.ca
Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia staff:
Managing Director: Sara Lee Lewis
Artistic Director: Jim Morrow
Artistic Advisor for Music and Sound Design: Steven Naylor
Logistics Co-ordinator: Peter F. Smith
Director of Youtheatre: Christopher Heide
Administrator: Cathy White
Office/Tour Manager: Karen Gasser
Assistant to the Managing Director: Lisa Gleave
Production Manager: Deborah MacLean
Institute of Puppetry Arts Director: Jesse MacLean
Shop Manager: Jonathan Ford
Technical Director: Mike Jamieson
Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia gratefully acknowledges the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, and the Nova Scotia Department of Tourism, Culture and Heritage. Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia is a member of the Professional Theatre Association of Canadian Theatres and engages professional Artists who are members of Canadian Actors' Equity Association under the terms of the Canadian Theatre Agreement.
