Show to celebrate childrens theater group's 60th season

MIDDLETOWN — The Paper Bag Players children's theater group is celebrating its 60th season this year, according to the organization.
The company is celebrating the milestone with a blend of classic sketches as well as brand new works that are brimming with live music and dance, singalong songs, hilarious stories, and lots of audience participation, that are all wrapped in the Bags’ signature paper and cardboard costumes and sets, the group announced in a press release.
According to the release, the celevration is scheduled to take place in the William and Helen Richards Theatre at Orange Hall in SUNY Orange at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 13.
The show will start with “Nothing Like a Show,” a skit that engages the audience by taking a tour through Paper Bag Players history with a carnival of characters from across the decades including the bumbling Bob the Slob, a family of noses, dancing bears and dogs, and a 15-foot-tall dinosaur, the release said.
Next, a fan favorite, “Lost in the Mall,” features a confused cardboard family that needs help to find each other, followed by a request in the form of a singalong to get reluctant Peter to take a bath in “I Won’t Take a Bath.”
The show continues with “The Cactus and the Balloon,” about a very unlikely friendship, and “Dream Come True,” about a pizza-tossing family, according to the release.
Among brand new pieces, “Mister Mixup” features a daffy magician who can create a butterfly out of – what else? – a stick of butter and a fly, and “Shipwreck Island,” a thrilling adventure complete with hot air balloon, a pirate queen and her talking parrot, charming songs, and the search for an ancient sword.
According to the release, this innovative company has set the standard since 1958 for original productions that speak directly and vividly to children, while amusing adults with sly wit.
The show is perfect for children ages 3-8, and the Paper Bag Players performances are lively, colorful, humorous, and thought-provoking for any aged theatre-goers, the release said.
Orange Hall is located at the corner of Wawayanda and Grandview Avenues in Middletown, where free parking is available in the big adjacent lot.
Tickets can be purchased online anytime at www.sunyorange.edu/arts_comm/ticketing.shtml.
The costs are: children $6.50; adults $8.50; seniors, faculty, staff, alumni $7.50; plus a $2.50 online service charge for each ticket.
SUNY Orange students with ID are admitted free at the door.
According to the releasde, the show is usually a sell-out.
Any available tickets will also be sold at the Orange Hall box office starting at 1pm the afternoon of the performance.

Questions may be directed to Cultural Affairs: (845)341-4891 and cultural@sunyorange.edu
website: www.sunyorange.edu/culturalaffairs.