Showing titles in Performing Arts

Watch as the curtains open and the opera begins. The seven operatic stories in this beautiful collection are each proceeded by an introduction about the origins of the story. There are also extensive notes about opera houses, behind-the-scenes terminology, famous opera houses and composers, and more.

Allie is crushed when she is cast as the evil queen in the fourth grade class play. But she soon learns it's the size of the heart, not the size of the part that matters.

Jim Henson broke into television with a five-minute puppetry segment when he was only a freshman in college. He created puppets like none ever seen before, with expressive fabric faces and rod-controlled arms. His Muppets became world-renowned celebrities and formed the backbone of a media empire. This easy-to-listen-to biography will be published 20 years after Henson's untimely death.

Every kid wants to laugh, but Max is the boy who can make it happen. When his friends start talking about a new scary movie, Max realises they don’t just want to laugh … they also want to scream! Max is the funny kid, but does he know how to make his own scary movie? An oversupply of slime, a bumbling babysitter, a ghastly ghost, a melodramatic mummy and a terrifying beast called Duckenstein are just some of the things in store for Max and his friends in this brand-new Funny Kid adventure.

Brenda Black prides herself on her logical and orderly mind. She studies anatomy books and idolizes Leonardo da Vinci. But things go haywire when her spoiled cousin Tiffany comes to visit. Fed up with Tiffany's bragging, Brenda snaps when Tiffany implies that Brenda is not cultured enough to know who Miss Camilla Freeman is--Miss Camilla Freeman, the very famous prima ballerina. Brenda tells Tiffany that not only does she know who Camilla Freeman is, but she happens to own an autographed pair of her toe shoes.

Julia McKenzie, Simon Carter and Terry Molloy star in this BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation. On a hot, Edwardian summer's day, five children are granted a series of wishes by a strange creature they find.

As a child his passions were comics and cars, but George Lucas grew up to be one of the most successful filmmakers of all time. He is a producer, screenwriter, director, and entrepreneur whose company Lucasfilms pioneered the movie effects that changed the world of animation. He founded Industrial Light and Magic, which transformed special sound and visual effects throughout the Hollywood film industry. He is best known, of course, as the creator of the Star Wars movie, television, gaming, toy and merchandise empire, as well as the archeologist-adventure series Indiana Jones.

If you have a budding ballerina or are simply going to see Swan Lake with your child, this book builds an understanding of the story line and includes the full musical score. This is a great way to introduce your child to the ballet masterwork so they have a better appreciation for the ballet when experiencing it in person. The story is told in synchronization with the music so that the young listener understands the story and how the music reflects the story line.

It's spring break, and Stink is faced with a difficult choice: hang out at home with his sister, Judy, or become a Shakespeare Sprite with his friend Sophie of the Elves. Hanged be! When Sophie tells Stink that there will be swordplay and cursing at Shakespeare camp, his choice is made. But wait! How now? The eager young thespian hadn't counted on Riley Rottenberger being a Sprite, too. And he positively had not counted on being the only boy! Fie upon't!

Meet Audrey Hepburn as you've never seen her before in Little Audrey's Daydream: The Life of Audrey Hepburn, an empowering children's book by her son and daughter-in-law, Sean and Karin Hepburn Ferrer.

Rising to fame with her 1936 novel Ballet Shoes, Noel Streatfeild soon became one of the most popular authors of her day. She was one of the first winners of the Carnegie Medal and was awarded an OBE in 1983. She died in 1986, but her stories continue to captivate children today. Included here are three of her very best - Ballet Shoes, The Growing Summer and When the Siren Wailed.

Tom Falconer is in trouble. Pursued by the notorious criminal Ratsey, Tom soon finds himself alone and hungry on the streets of London. Luckily enough, the mysterious Dr Mobius soon recruits Tom to play an important role in a play to be performed in front of Queen Elizabeth. Tom knows there’s something not right about Mobius, but he’s willing to take a risk in order to keep his neck out of Ratsey’s murderous hands.

This friendly, fun biography series focuses on the traits that made our heroes great - the traits that kids can aspire to in order to live heroically themselves. Jim Henson, for example, was always dreaming up something new, and always expressing his belief in the goodness of people. Henson was a born performer with a terrific sense of humor, and he used those talents to help create two of the most beloved programs in television history: The Muppet Show and Sesame Street. Through his Muppets, Jim showed the world that there’s nothing more beautiful than imagination.

Kavi Sharma loves singing and dancing, so when her middle school announces a musical revue, she and her friends Sophie and Pari decide to perform a dance together. If only they could agree on what dance style to do! Soon, all Kavi can think about is the revue, and her schoolwork starts to slip, which has never happened to her before. Kavi's little brother Rishi says she has a bad case of "Broadwayitis." Can she find a way to stay on top of on her schoolwork and get her dance moves down before the curtain goes up?

Haunting, gentle spirits from far-flung worlds meet in the pulsing sphere of dreams and lullabies that is Angel Heart, a music storybook.

Aya is 11 years old and has just arrived in Britain with her mum and baby brother, seeking asylum from war in Syria. When Aya stumbles across a local ballet class, the formidable dance teacher spots her exceptional talent and believes that Aya has the potential to earn a prestigious ballet scholarship. But at the same time, Aya and her family must fight to be allowed to remain in the country, to make a home for themselves and to find Aya's father - separated from the rest of the family during the journey from Syria.

In exuberant verse, Patricia Hruby Powell creates an extraordinary portrait of the passionate performer and civil rights advocate Josephine Baker, the woman who worked her way from the slums of St. Louis to the grandest stages in the world. Meticulously researched by the author, Josephine's powerful story of struggle and triumph is an inspiration and a spectacle, just like the legend herself

Born in 1925, Maria Tallchief spent part of her childhood on an Osage reservation in Oklahoma. With the support of her family and world-renowned choreographer George Balanchine, she rose to the top of her art form to become America's first prima ballerina.

Delphie’s greatest dream is to become a ballerina, and she can't quite believe it when she is invited to join the new ballet school. But there's more to Madame Zarakova's than it at first seems, and with the help of some very special ballet shoes, Delphie finds herself spinning into a whole new world.

Discover how the "little girl with the big voice" transitioned from vaudeville to movie stardom and landed the role of a lifetime. The world fell in love with her as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, the 1939 MGM classic, one of the most beloved films of all time. She went on to become one of the greatest entertainers in show business history. This is her story.