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NEW YORK ACTOR AND COMEDIAN DAVID ENGEL brings his madcap act, Pirate School, to the Target Family Theatre Festival’s Party in the Park this year. Playing pirate Billy Bones, Engel offers fun, interactive lessons on how to be a proper pirate.

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Birthday BashTHE 6TH ANNUAL TARGET FAMILY THEATRE FESTIVAL

KICKS OFF THE REP’S 10TH BIRTHDAY SEASON IN STYLE.

Created by the Orlando Repertory Theatre (The REP), the annual Target

Family Theatre Festival has become Central Florida’s premier summertime cultural event. Now in its sixth year, the festival has continued to grow, attracting top talent from Orlando and beyond, as well as locals looking for great experi-ences that everyone in their family will enjoy. However, 2012 marks a special

milestone as The REP pulls out all the stops to celebrate its 10th birthday season—and the Target Festival marks its official launch.

Show TimeWith a variety of stage productions,

shows, special activities and its signature Party in the Park component, the Target Family Theatre Festival has proved so

popular that it continues to be extended. Running from July 20 to August 5 this year, the event will take place over three weekends, thanks to generous support from the Target Corporation and Orange County’s Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs.

“It’s become a regular thing for a lot of people,” says Jeff Revels, The REP’s artistic director. “And it’s been fine-tuned over the years.” Revels and the team at The REP

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GRAMMY-NOMINATED BRADY RYMER comes to Central Florida with his Little Band That Could; the group will perform two shows on Saturday, July 28.

FREE PERFORMANCES are the main attraction at Party in the Park, a two-day, indoor/outdoor component of the Target Festival that offers nonstop family-friendly entertainment.

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have put a lot of thought into when and where to hold what performances and what components to include. Teaming up with community partners such as Orlando Science Center and Blue Man Group helps keep the festival fresh and exciting.

Anchoring this year’s lineup are two musicals: The REP’s Youth Academy pro-duction of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s State Fair and Katie Couric’s The Brand New Kid. The Youth Academy is a pre-professional-level program for high-school students that brings quality productions to the stage. From costumes to sets to lighting, all elements are top-notch, and the show changes each year. “We always want to mix it up,” says Revels. “We did Hairspray last year, but we also want to honor those composers that, without them, none of this stuff would exist.” With an Academy Award-winning score and superb direction, State Fair is guaranteed to be a crowd pleaser.

Revels is particularly excited about a new partnership between the Orlando family theater and The City Theatre of Miami. The two groups worked together last year to bring a City Theatre show to the Target Festival, but this year, they are collaborating on the production of The Brand New Kid, which Revels is directing. Adapted from Couric’s popular children’s book, The Brand New Kid will make several stops in south Florida before coming to The REP July 21-29. It tells the story of Lazlo S. Gasky, a new kid who gets teased at school. Once he’s befriended by another student, everyone soon learns the importance of giving others a chance. Bullying is a hot topic these days, and Revels feels that it’s a fitting story for the festival. “As a children’s theater company in the community, we have an obligation to address issues going on in young people’s lives right now,” he says.

Two-Day PartyWhile those two musical productions

form the backbone of the Target Festival, the heart and soul of the event is Party in the Park, a free indoor/outdoor celebra-tion that will take place over two days for the first time this year. On July 28 and 29, Loch Haven Park will come alive with a wide variety of family-friendly shows, games, crafts and other activities. From food trucks to face painters, Party in the

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NEW TO THE FESTIVAL this year, entertainer Nels Ross brings his unique brand of physical comedy to Orlando all the way from New York.

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KIDS CAN MEET CHARACTERS from some of The REP’s theatrical productions during Party in the Park.

Park has something for every member of the family.

The best part about the weekend event is that The REP brings in top-tier local and national talent—and all of those shows are also free. This year’s regional perform-ers include magician and entertainer Tony Brent and Mr. Richard and the Pound Hounds, acts that have performed at the festival before. “They are really our cream of the crop for young audiences, and we like to support the entertainers that are our homegrown artists,” says Revels. National acts such as Brady Rymer and The Little Band That Could, David Engel’s Pirate School, and comedian and perform-er Nels Ross will also be on hand.

Rymer, who has recorded six children’s CDs and was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2008, performed at the Target Festival years ago, but Revels says there’s a whole new group of three- to seven-year-olds just waiting to discover him. Rymer’s newest release, Love Me for Who I Am, won a 2011 Parents’ Choice Gold award, and he’s sure to have audiences singing along. Young buccaneers won’t want to miss Pirate School. The brainchild of Engel,

a comedian and actor, the show features pirate professor Billy Bones, who teaches kids how to act like proper pirates while also addressing important age-appropriate topics.

Ross, a “professional oddball” from New York state, presents his own unique brand of physical comedy during In Jest: The Greatest Show on Mirth. Patrons can expect some creative juggling, a lot of humor and edge-of-your-seat stunts that the whole family can appreciate. Influ-enced by Dick Van Dyke, Stan Laurel and Red Skelton, Ross says, “My greatest joy is when parents or grandparents say “I don’t know who enjoyed the show more!’”

Revels says that extending Party in the Park to two days was “just a natural expan-sion. People would come on Sunday, and the tents would still be up and I think they felt like something was missing. It was just natural to keep that family, Party-in-the-Park atmosphere going.” That atmosphere will include Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra’s (OPO) Instrument Petting Zoo, a Blue Man Group educational activ-ity area, and The REP Attic, a play area of props and costumes where kids can play

Performances*

FRIDAY, JULY 207 p.m., State Fair

SATURDAY, JULY 212 p.m., 7 p.m., State Fair

2:30 p.m., 5 p.m., The Brand New Kid

SUNDAY, JULY 222 p.m., State Fair

2:30 p.m., 5 p.m., The Brand New Kid

MONDAY, JULY 2311 a.m., The Brand New Kid

TUESDAY, JULY 2411 a.m., The Brand New Kid

WEDNESDAY, JULY 2511 a.m., The Brand New Kid

7 p.m., State Fair

FRIDAY, JULY 277 p.m., State Fair

SATURDAY, JULY 2810 a.m.-2 p.m., Party in the Park

10:30 a.m., Far Out! The Outrageous Comedy & Magic of Tony Brent

11 a.m., Brady Rymer and The Little Band That Could

Noon, In Jest with Nels Ross

1 p.m., The Brand New Kid

2 p.m., State Fair

2 p.m., In Jest with Nels Ross

3 p.m., Brady Rymer and The Little Band That Could

5 p.m., The Brand New Kid

7 p.m., State Fair

SUNDAY, JULY 2911 a.m.-2 p.m., Party in the Park

11:30 a.m., Pirate School

12:30 p.m., Davey Rocker’s Barnyard Jam

1:30 p.m., The Brand New Kid

2 p.m., State Fair

2 p.m., Davey Rocker’s Barnyard Jam

3:30 p.m., Pirate School

5:30 p.m., Mr. Richard & The Pound Hounds

FRIDAY, AUGUST 37 p.m., State Fair

SATURDAY, AUGUST 42 p.m., 7 p.m. State Fair

SUNDAY, AUGUST 52 p.m., State Fair

*Excludes Party in the Park outdoor stage performances.

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“dress up.” Children can also sample Youth Academy classes and interact with costumed actors. In conjunction with its 10th season, there also will be themed activity tents relating to upcoming shows.

Birthday CelebrationReaching 10 years is a huge milestone

for The REP, and celebrations are planned throughout the 2012-2013 season, in addition to a great roster of productions. The musical The Paper Bag Princess will start things off in September, and other offerings include The Voyages of Doctor Doolittle, Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, which Revels has always wanted to do. He adds of the lineup, “each season builds upon the other. These scripts pose challenges big enough that we had to grow ten years strong to attempt them.”

Other birthday events will include a special outdoor concert on October 20 in conjunction with OPO, which is celebrat-ing its 20th birthday. OPO will present a special lineup of Americana music, and The REP’s Power Chords group and Mr. Richard and the Pound Hounds will also perform. The concert will start at 6 p.m., and is completely free—a gift to Central Floridians for their continued support.

The REP has ingrained itself in the community, not just when it comes to entertainment, but in partnerships, edu-cational and outreach efforts and much more. In that tradition, the theater is introducing the Heroes program to honor the contributions of some of Orlando’s youngest residents. Adopted from the Children’s Theatre Company of Minne-apolis, Heroes will celebrate kids and schools that are making a difference in the community. Anyone will be able to make nominations, and winners will be recog-nized at the opening of each REP produc-tion this season, beginning with State Fair.

From musicals to free family entertain-ment, the Target Family Theatre Festival offers something for everyone, and this year, that includes a sneak peek at The REP’s celebratory 10th season.

Tickets to State Fair and Katie Couric’s The Brand New Kid are $15 and $10, respec-tively, and can be purchased through the box office at 407.896.7365 and online at orlandorep.com. Indoor Party in the Park shows are free and tickets may be acquired at the Information Tent or the box office.

MR. RICHARD AND THE POUND HOUNDS are some of the area’s best children’s entertainers. You can catch their act on Sunday, July 29.

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KIDS DON’T HAVE TO SIT STILL HERE; The Target Festival is all about having fun.

THE REP’S Youth Academy will present the musical State Fair from July 20 to August 5.

HANDS-ON ARTS AND CRAFTS ACTIVITIES are offered through the duration of Party in the Park and are designed to engage kids of all ages.

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