Broadway Series South and Casa Manana's STORYBOOK THEATER Heads to Raleigh, Beginning Today

Broadway Series South in collaboration with Casa Mañana of Fort Worth, TX announced today an exciting new theatre series, Storybook Theater. The four shows feature a professional cast of Equity actors in shows staged specifically for children and families. Proceeds from Storybook Theater benefit Marbles Kids Museum in Raleigh, a 501(c)(3) non-profit.

The 2013 inaugural season showcases four popular children's tales; beginning in March with Rapunzel! A Very Hairy Fairy Tale; and continuing throughout the year with Disney's Winnie the Pooh, Kids; Dora the Explorer, Live! Dora's Pirate Adventure; and Frosty the Snowman.

The concept for the series was born from a partnership formed years ago between Jim Lavery, Broadway Series South and Wally Jones, previous director at the North Carolina Theater. Jones left NCT in 2008 to take the helm at Casa Mañana in Fort Worth. Both men felt the success of professional children's theatre in Texas would translate well to the Triangle and soon plans were in the works to bring the series to the Raleigh. The one-hour performances are geared to young audiences, and ticket prices are designed to introduce more families to professional live theatre.

"Our research demonstrated that there is an abundance of parents and grandparents looking to expose their children to theatre at a very early age", said Jim Lavery, General Manager, Broadway Series South. "When we looked at options currently available in the market we couldn't find anything that compared to this professional and yet affordable series. The successful history of Casa Mañana children's theatre ensures these shows offer quality content for younger kids, and we are so happy the routing worked to benefit both cities."

"Marbles is pleased to be part of this exciting new cultural and learning opportunity," said Sally Edwards, president of Marbles Kids Museum. "Live theatre is known to jumpstart children's imagination and help lengthen their attention span. We're delighted that the children and families we serve will benefit from shows geared especially for them, while our entire community will benefit from the resulting investment in Marbles."

Tickets start at just $14. Ticket prices for special Friday School Performances are $7.50 for all seats. Marbles Kids Museum members save $2 per ticket purchased through the assigned Marbles ticket link. Season tickets are $70 and $52; Marbles member price is $66 and $48. A limited number of VIP seats for each performance are $47 per ticket. VIP seats include premium seating, character meet and greet and a special gift. Tickets can be purchased at the Progress Energy Center Box Office, Ticketmaster Outlets or by calling: 1-800-745-3000.

Rapunzel! A Very Hairy Fairy Tale - March 1 - 3, 2013 (Raleigh Memorial Auditorium)
Times: Friday 10:30am (School Performance) & 6:30pm; Saturday 11am & 5pm; Sunday 11am & 2pm

"Rapunzel" comes to life in a magical new musical featuring that beautiful princess with the long, long, long hair trapped in the tower, a handsome young suitor who doesn't quite know what he's searching for - of course, an evil witch who has her eye on what should be Rapunzel's kingdom, and a tired, yet philosophical, old dragon who tries to make sense of it all! A charming musical adventure for the whole family!

Disney's Winnie the Pooh, Kids - April 12 - 14, 2013 (Raleigh Memorial Auditorium)
Times: Friday 10:30am (School Performance) & 6:30pm; Saturday 11am & 5pm; Sunday 11am & 2pm

DISNEY'S WINNIE THE POOH KIDS welcomes audiences to the Hundred Acre Wood, where Winnie the Pooh is once again sharing snacks.

Dora the Explorer, Live! Dora's Pirate Adventure - November 1 - 3, 2013 (Raleigh Memorial Auditorium)
Times: Friday 10:30am (School Performance)& 6:30pm; Saturday 11am & 5pm; Sunday 11am & 2pm

Dora, her best buddy Boots the Monkey, and the rest of their friends embark on an exciting trip to Treasure Island. The audience helps them navigate over Dancing Mountain and through Silly Singing Bridge to confront the Pirate Piggies. Along the way, the audience will use map-reading, counting, musical and language skills to successfully help Dora reach the treasure. All ends happily onstage with a "yo-ho-ho"!

Frosty the Snowman - November 26 - December 24, 2013 (A.J. Fletcher Opera Theater)
November 26, December 4, 11 & 18 - 10:30am (School Performance), November 27 - 29 - 6:30pm, November 30, December 7, 14 & 21 - 11am & 5pm, December 1, 8, 15 & 22 - 11am & 2pm, December 3 - 6:30pm, December 5 - 6 - 6:30pm, December 10 - 6:30pm, December 12 - 13 - 6:30pm, December 17 - 6:30pm, December 19 - 20 - 6:30pm and December 24 - 11am.

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