MURRAY – If you’re of a certain age, you’ll probably get a song stuck in your head if you hear someone mention the word “conjunction” or if they discuss how a bill becomes a law. If that dexcription applies to you, you’ll feel right at home this weekend when Playhouse in the Park brings the iconic songs from “Schoolhouse Rock!” to the stage.
“Schoolhouse Rock!” was a series of animated shorts that aired between other cartoons during ABC’s Saturday morning children’s programming block. Beginning in 1973, the shorts continued airing through 1985 and were then brought back to the air in 1992, playing for the rest of the decade. Some of the best-known songs include “Three Is a Magic Number,” “I’m Just a Bill,” and “Conjunction Junction,” among many others.
In 1993, the shorts were adapted for the stage, and “Schoolhouse Rock Live!” premiered in Chicago before coming to New York two years later for a 1995 Off-Broadway production. The show has since gone on several national tours.
Playhouse in the Park Executive Director Lisa Copeland is directing the local production, and she said the play selection committee chose it for several reasons.
“People were familiar with it, and it seemed like a good choice for for children,” Copeland said. “It's really written to be performed by adults for children, but we were able to get permission to perform it with kids. Post-COVID, a lot of rules (in theatrical licensing for community theaters) have been relaxed.”
Cope said the cast includes 11 children and one young adult, and the kids have really taken to the material. Since the shorts were such a childhood staple for Generation X and millennials, she at first wondered if the material would be new to the cast. In the age of YouTube, though, pop culture has a funny way of living on in unexpected ways.
“One thing that was interesting to me was that I figured I would have to explain to them what ‘Schoolhouse Rock!’ was, but they know because teachers still use them,” Copeland said. “They show them clips from the show, so every one of them knew what the show is and they knew the songs already. That surprised me.
“I think it also shows that music helps us remember things. As I started working on this show, things just tumbled out of my brain that I remembered from the show when I was a kid. I’m interested to see the audience that will come, because I feel like some of my generation is going to come for the nostalgia, and then, of course, I expect we’ll get lots of children.”
“Schoolhouse Rock Live!” will be one weekend only, and it will be performed at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and at 2:30 p.m. Sunday. For tickets, visit playhousemurray.org or call 270-759 1752.
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