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Baobab features African storytelling, puppetry & live music

Crafts and ice cream offered after matinee performance

“Beautifully creates a mythic world.”—Calgary Herald, on Baobab

wexner center for the arts
Baobab. Photo by Robert Etcheverry. Click for high resolution version.
For immediate release—February 15, 2011—As part of its International Performing Arts for Families series, the Wexner Center is pleased to present Baobab on March 11 and 12 for ages 4 and up. This internationally acclaimed theater show uses live music, puppetry, masks, and West African storytelling traditions to transport young audiences to a mythical West African village.

Performed by Canada’s Théâtre Motus in partnership with Troupe Sô of Mali, this show features live music on traditional African instruments including the kora (an instrument similar to the lute), balophone (akin to a xylophone), and mbira (or “thumb piano”), along with ingenious puppetry and striking masks. Told in English, Baobab was inspired by the West African griot tradition of musically accompanied oral storytelling. The music for the show is composed by Montreal-based composer and musician Aboulaye Koné, who also performs.

Notes Shelly Casto, the Wexner Center’s director of education, “Baobab is an engaging, celebratory show that features ingenious use of puppets and incredible live music. I fell in love with it the minute I saw it, and knew I wanted to bring it to the Wex.”

The story tells about an ancient baobab tree, known in West Africa as the “mother of the forest,” in a village that has suffered from drought. The tree brings forth an egg, and from this egg a boy is born who turns out to be the only one who can free the water buried in the heart of the ancient tree. But first he must go on a quest filled with challenges and excitement.

Video trailer



Canada’s Le Soleil newspaper notes that the show’s “rhythmical music and the wonderful sets capture the young audience’s attention instantly.... Little eyes were glued to the action, hands were clapping and toes were tapping for the entire performance.” Canada’s Le Courrier du Sud described it as a “compelling, gentle and delightful fable.”

Théâtre Motus, based in Longueuil, Quebec (near Montréal), specializes in works for young audiences that meld music, puppeteering, and traditional theater techniques into unique performance experiences. Baobabis coproduced with Troupe Sô of Mali.

Additional activites
Following the Saturday matinee, the Wex will host free puppet craft activities. Free Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream will also be available after the Saturday show in the Mershon lobby.

African Storytime
The Columbus Metropolitan Library in partnership with the Wexner Center, presents a special African Storytime program at the library (downtown location at 96 S. Grant Ave.) on Saturday, February 26 at 11 am, especially for ages 2-6. Families will hear tales from African traditions of storytelling, presented by librarians, and then participate in a hands-on creative activity with educators from the Wexner Center. Admission is free.

MORE PERFORMING ARTS FOR FAMILIES

The Tragical Life of Cheeseboy
May 13–15 in the Wexner Center’s Black Box on Mershon Stage
Slingsby Theatre Company, based in Adelaide, South Australia, specializes in productions for young people ages 10 to 14. In The Tragical Life of Cheeseboy, the audience sits underneath a magical traveling theater tent, where a storyteller shares an enchanting and timeless tale. Cheeseboy's home planet has been reduced to a bubbling fondue. Where are his parents? How did he become marooned on earth? Wondrous, funny, and achingly familiar, Cheeseboy’s journey leads him toward a new life filled with independence and new possibilities. Utilizing magic lantern–style shadow puppetry and ingenious “treasure boxes,” this performance will touch young and old alike.

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