Sunday, March 8, 2009

UP NEXT: Tomato Plant Girl (April 4 & 5, 2009)


Widener University’s FreshBaked Theatre Company present Tomato Plant Girl on Saturday April 4 and Sunday April 5 @ 2:00 pm in Alumni Auditorium on the main campus in Chester. School matinees, by reservation only, are available Thursday and Friday, April 2 and 3 at 9:15 am. Admission is by free will cash donation, with all monies going to Bernardine Center Food Pantry to help local families in need. Suggested donation is $1 per person. Running time is 60 minutes and it is appropriate for children ages 5 and up.

Tomato Plant Girl, by playwright Wesley Middleton, delights young audiences with its sharp dialogue, physical action and playful, high-energy conflict. Little Girl is the new kid in Heretown. Good thing she's got her Bossy Best Friend! The girls share a garden where time moves to the rhythm of Bossy's commands until the day Little Girl can no longer obey. Bossy has forbidden Little Girl to touch her precious tomato plant. But if the plant doesn't get watered soon, it will die. When Bossy leaves to visit her grandma, Little Girl uproots the plant in a valiant rescue, and a messy girl-creature springs out of the earth, spitting up dirt and crying red tears. Soon, Little Girl is playing crazy new games with Tomato Plant Girl and teaching her to say "please." Maybe Little Girl has found a new Best Friend. But what will they do when Bossy returns? And what if Tomato Plant Girl won't stay? When her friendships collide and Little Girl has to choose, she discovers the power of making up her own rules. This play addresses bullying, conflict resolution, character education, making good choices, getting along, saying you are sorry, environmental issues, and friendship.

FreshBaked Theatre Company is a Widener student ensemble that produces inventive drama for young minds and the people who nurture them. Past productions include The Mischief Makers, The Arkansaw Bear, Hansel and Gretel, Red Badge of Courage, and Wiley and the Hairy Man.

For More Information: please email the director, Lisa Eckley Cocchiarale, at ljcocchiarale@mail.widener.edu or call 610-499-4341.