Culture Project (Allan Buchman, Artistic Director), who brought to the stage the successful, seven-season run of the children’s show Maya the Bee, has announced a special, six-performance run of the acclaimed children’s jazz puppet show The Cat Who Went to Heaven at The Harlem School of the Arts Theater (647 St. Nicholas Avenue @141st Street). Directed by Will Pomerantz, with music and lyrics by Nancy Harrow, this show is based on the 1931 Newbery Award-winning children’s book by Elizabeth Coatsworth. Performances begin Wednesday, May 13. There is a suggested donation of $10.
The Cat Who Went to Heaven features notable instrumentalists Clark Terry, Kenny Barron, Frank Wess and the voice of Grady Tate. The tale is about the intertwined fates of a struggling Japanese artist, his housekeeper, a Buddhist priest from the local temple and an inspirational cat named Good Fortune.
The Cat Who Went to Heaven brings together contemporary jazz and the traditional Japanese art of “Bunraku” puppetry. The full cast includes the singing voices of Ms. Harrow (as the title cat), Grady Tate (as the Artist), Anton Krukowski and Daryl Sherman, with Kameron Steele as the narrator. The puppeteers include Lara MacLean (as the Artist), Melissa Creighton (as the Cat), with Anna Sobel, Kate Katz and Eric Wright. The full design team includes Jane Catherine Shaw and Amanda Maddock (puppet design and construction), Amanda Maddock (costume design) and Joseph Silovsky (set design).
For more information, visit Culture Project or Harlem School of the Arts. Reservations can be made at 212-479-0829.
