Four Queens kids and teens will star in a hilarious retelling of “Little Red Riding Hood” with a holiday twist.
From Nov. 23 through Dec. 15, TADA! Youth Theater presents “The Dangerous Christmas of Red Riding Hood,” a musical told from the perspective of the big bad wolf. Sixteen-year-old Oscar Segarra stars as Percival the Wolf, 9-year-old Claudia Fabella doubles as Mother Hood and the Skunk and 14-year-olds Keimela Leitch and Leila David play Moose and Chipmunk. respectively.
Originally produced as a 1965 television special featuring Liza Minnelli, Cyril Richard, and Vic Damone, TADA! was the first company to perform the musical on stage. Robert Emmet wrote the book for the musical, with lyrics by Bob Merrill and music by Jule Styne.
“It’s an honor to be at TADA!. Theater is such a creative and respected art. TADA! is a place where you can be yourself. I am now more open in school and everywhere,” said Segarra, a junior at Talent Unlimited High School. “Percival is a member of the wolf pack. We experience wolf pack peer pressure, and we are more like animals. Lone T. Wolf feels misunderstood, and he is trying to break away from the pack and be something better.”
Janine Nina Trevens, TADA!’s founder and producing artistic director will direct the musical, while the choreography will be handled by Joanna Greer, TADA!’s associate artistic director and resident choreographer.
Trevens and Linda Reiff co-founded TADA! in 1984 with the mission to “inspire young people from different backgrounds to be creative, learn, and think differently through high-quality musical theater productions and educational programs.” Since its inception, the Drama Desk award-winning nonprofit has produced original musicals for children, teens and families.
Children ages eight to 18 can participate in a free, year-round, pre-professional training and positive youth development program. TADA! also offers musical theater classes and camps for the public and musical theater residencies in NYC Department of Education schools and community centers.
For tickets to the show, visit tadatheater.com/buy-tickets. Performances of ‘The Dangerous Christmas of Red Riding Hood’ are Nov. 23, Dec. 6 and Dec. 13 at 7 p.m.; Nov. 23, Nov. 30, and Dec. 1, 7, 8, 14 and 15 at 2 and 4 p.m.; and Dec. 4 at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
To learn more about TADA! Youth Theater, visit tadatheater.com or find the nonprofit on Facebook and Twitter.
