Paramount Theatre's Story Wranglers Give
3rd Graders a Voice with New Show
The Story
Wranglers - part of the Paramount Theatre's Academy for the
Arts - works with Austin-area classrooms to bring kids' stories
to their own school stages in front of an audience of their
peers. Now, those stories move downtown to the historic
State Theatre for a special staging on Tuesday, January 31st.
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Current University of
Texas student Ben Bazan has been working for The Story
Wranglers for more than three years, bringing 3rd graders
stories to life while bolstering enthusiasm for writing,
storytelling and self-expression in their classroom. This
past fall - while teaching creative writing techniques for
seven weeks at Hart Elementary, he noticed that there was a
desk that had all the clues of a student working at it, but was
always empty while he was there.
He inquired about the
seemingly deserted desk and asked why that student wasn't a
part of the Story Wrangler program. The teacher soberly
mentioned that the student had recently been recovering from
cancer and was utilizing tutorials to catch up.
Bazan spent extra
days working directly with the student, Juan, and the duo
worked on stories. Juan was especially interested in
having his story about his fight against cancer written and
shared - where the student was a superhero who defeated evil
cancer monsters.
The Story Wranglers
team produced and performed Juan's story at Hart Elementary to
great response, and the show now moves downtown - along with
other 3rd grade-created stories - for a one-night performance
at the State Theatre. Doors open at 6 p.m., with the
curtain going up at 7 p.m. Tickets are $5 for general
admission.
The State Theatre
and Stateside at the Paramount is located at 719 Congress
Avenue. For more information and reservations, call (512)
474-1221 or visit www.AustinTheatre.org.
(Image courtesy Austin Theatre)
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