For families with children age 12 and under

Sprouts 2023

Sowing New Ideas!

The 21st annual Sprouts New Play Festival for Kids presents another crop of new short plays for kids and families!

3 plays penned by playwrights from diverse cultural backgrounds will share their newest works in staged readings.

Introduce your children to live theatre through this engaging and gentle first theatre experience. Show length is approximately 60 minutes.

Click to buy tickets for Saturday May 13! Tickets are also available at the door.

Click to book your school on Friday May 12!


All ticket sales will be matched up to 50% by our charity partner Shaw Birdies for Kids presented by AltaLink


About the Plays:

When Mom Is Not Home… We Clean?
By Deviani Andrea

Three young siblings come together to figure out the best way to clean their playroom after a horrific incident involving play-doh. This task becomes a conversation about efficiency & fairness and the hidden enjoyments that come with sharing duties with your siblings. A quick turn of events makes cleaning something so fun that Jamie, Lore, and Myrt can’t wait for the next time mom is away… because when mom isn’t home, they clean!


Aced
By Kristen Padayas

Alicia is a young mixed race girl who excels in school. Her final class project asks her to talk about her ethnic identity. Alicia has more than one ethnic identity and she doesn’t know which one would be the best to report on to guarantee her an ‘A’. She will need to ask her family for help…but the family who shows up is not who she expects! 


Kohkum’s Babushka: A Magical Métis/Ukrainian Tale
By Lianna Makuch and Joleen Ballendine
Adapted from the book by Marion Mutala

Kohkum’s Babushka follows two young girls, Natalia and Paulette, who couldn’t be any more different. So when the two are paired together for a class assignment to explore their similarities, they are prepared for a disaster. Natalia finds her grandmother’s “babushka,” or “headscarf,” and she is magically taken through time to the vibrant Prairies of the late 1800s. Here both Natalia’s Ukrainian and Paulette’s Métis ancestors meet for the first time. Through this encounter they learn the values of generosity and reciprocity.

Credits

Playwrights: Kristen Padayas, Deviani Andrea, and Lianna Makuch & Joleen Ballendine

Performers: Noori Gill, Danielle LaRose and Andrés Moreno

Director: Tracy Carroll

Dramaturg: Caroline Howarth

Stage Manager: Molly Pearson

Set & Props Designer: Brock Keeler

Costume Designer: Betty Kolodziej

Sound Designer: Dave Clarke

Lighting Designer: Heather Cornick

ASL Interpretation Team: Thurga Kanagasekarampillai, Andrea Konowalec and Jody Morrison

Special Thanks: Alex Ariate, Bob Rasko, Concordia University, Lindsey Walker, Riley Sheppard, Christina Nguyen, Monique Méthot, Chris Scott, Jennifer Howarth, William Mitchell (for the use of his dinosaurs)

Resources

Interested in theatre in schools?

This is one of our past productions

Want to see what we’re working on right now?

See ongoing shows