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| Miss Viola Swamp
(Heather Beirne) | | The studetns of Room 204 (Gina Rivera,
Mark Catlett, Mike GIll and Rakia Jaclar) |
Miss Nelson is Missingadapted by Joan Cushing
based upon the books Miss Nelson is Missing and
Miss Nelson Returns by Harry Allard & James Marshall
directed by April-Dawn Gladu The students in Room 207 are misbehaving AGAIN! Nothing will stop them, not even Principal Blandsford's filmstrip about his pet fish. Nothing, until Miss Viola Swamp takes over. Kids will enjoy this modern, witty musical while teachers and parents will love the values of respect and generosity that it teaches. Part of the Darden Foundation
Theatre for Young Audiences Series
 
Gina Marie Rivera, Mark Catlett (L to R front): Mike Gill and Rakia JaClar May
Weekend Family Performances Miss Nelson is Missing weekend performances are on
October 22, 23, 29, 30, November 5, 6, 12, 13, 19, 2005 Bring the family on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon and enjoy the fun and excitement! Meet the cast after the show and take a picture or get an autograph for your young romper! Each show runs about 50 minutes long. BUY ONLINE TICKETS
or contact our box office at 407-447-1700 x 1 for tickets.
Adult Tickets: $13 Youth Tickets: $9
Children under 2 years old may sit in a parents lap for free.
Weekday Matinees for School GroupsSchool Matinee Performance Days: October 20, 21, 25, 26, 27, 28, November 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 9, 10, 11, 15, 16, 17, 18, 2005. All matinees for school groups are held on: at the Lowndes Shakespeare Festival in Loch Haven Park, Orlando.
School Group Weekday Student Tickets: $8
1 free chaperone ticket for every 10 students
Tickets call 407-447-1700 x 1
Study GuidesStudy Guides are available for all of our shows.
Click here to go to our Study Guide Pages To reserve your morning at the theaterCall the box office at 407-447-1700 x1, Monday Friday from 10:00am-4:30pm. Confirmation FormAfter you reserve your tickets, you will be mailed a Confirmation Form. Please sign and return your Confirmation Form within 7 days. This Confirmation Form is a binding contract between the school you represent and the theater. If your signed Confirmation Form has not been received 30 days prior to your field trip date, your reservation will be canceled. Deposit & Balance DueA 50% deposit is due no later than 30 days prior to your performance. The remaining balance is due 15 days before your performance. Seat CountUp to 30 days prior to your show, you may decrease your number of reserved seats by calling the box office with your new seat count. If you have not decreased your seat count by 30 days prior to your field trip date, the school you represent is financially responsible for the estimated seat count being held under your name. You may increase your seat count at any time based upon availability. Special NeedsTo guarantee that all members of your group can be accommodated, please request special arrangements when making your reservation. Transportation & SeatingWe are located at the Lowndes Shakespeare Center in Loch Haven Park, NOT AT UCF. Please make transportation arrangements that ensure your arrival will be 30 minutes before the performance time. You will be seated at the discretion of our professional theater staff on a first come, first served basis. For the safety and enjoyment of the actors and audience, late arrivals may be held outside the theater until an appropriate time in the show. Picnic in the ParkLoch Haven Park offers a grassy spot for picnics and relaxation for your group before or after the performance. Box Office 407-447-1700 x1
Monday - Friday, 10:00am - 4:30pm
REVIEWS
It's playtime! 'Miss Nelson' is terrific theater for kids
Orlando-UCF Shakespeare Festival's lively show passes all the tests: It earns an A!The Orlando Sentinel
Excerpts from the review by Elizabeth Maupin  Rakia JaClar May, Mike Gill and Heather Beirne
Before you ever see Miss Viola Swamp, an ominous shadow appears in the doorway of Room 207, and smoke pours in from the hall.
Miss Viola Swamp is bad news for the misbehaving kids of Room 207 -- a substitute teacher with a ruler in her hand. But she's good news for the audience at Miss Nelson Is Missing, the musical version of Harry Allard's popular children's books. Miss Viola Swamp means business, and she's a stitch.
So is Miss Nelson Is Missing, a genial little show that's just silly enough for kids and just sly enough for grown-ups. There's a lot of Orlando-UCF Shakespeare Festival expertise behind this production, but what comes across is simply fun.
Miss Nelson, of course, is the sweet-tempered teacher in Room 207, who tries her best to get her children to do their schoolwork but fails miserably every time. These kids, you see, are trouble -- happier to throw paper airplanes, strangle each other with a jump-rope or maybe spend an entire class with their heads in their backpacks.
It's only when Miss Swamp shows up as a substitute that Room 207's inhabitants wise up, pay attention and realize what they have taken for granted all along.
Director April-Dawn Gladu and her cohorts seem to have had a fine old time with this production, which starts out with a lively pre-show -- karaoke, guess-the-song contests and plenty of opportunity for pint-sized audience members to let off steam before the play begins. And the show's creative team shows its stuff in fine style, especially in Tom Mangieri's colorful set, complete with playground merry-go-round, and Mel Barger's whimsical costumes.
Some of the humor turns up in Jason Donnelly's startling sound effects (has a wooden ruler hitting a desk ever been so loud?), although the sound is cranked up so high in the first musical number that you can't understand the words. It doesn't help that some of the cast members, even though they're miked, don't have the world's strongest voices.
But none of that matters very much in this good-natured production, which makes the most of the oddballs of life. Take the school's nerdy principal, Mr. Blandsford (Dan Graul), who delights in practicing bird calls and collecting ballpoint pens. Or the police inspector, Detective McSmogg (Graul again) who is brought in to track down the missing teacher but never manages to remember poor Miss Nelson's name.
Heather Beirne is fine as sugary Miss Nelson, as are the four actors -- Mark Catlett, Michael Gill, Rakia JaClar May and Gina Marie Rivera -- who play her miscreant charges. (Catlett and Gill seem to have developed the most memorable tics.)
Still, it falls to Miss Swamp (Beirne again), fabulously costumed as the Wicked Witch of the West's evil stepsister, to get this production cracking. One slap of that ruler, and you'll crack up -- or else |
