You haven't introduced your children to the world of Charlie Brown? Good grief!
Happily, starting today, the Raleigh Little Theatre is presenting "Snoopy!!! The Musical," a comedy based on Charles Schulz's legendary comic strip, Peanuts.
"Snoopy" is similar to "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown," in that there isn't one story line, says RLT associate education director Kathleen Rudolph, who is also directing the production. Much of the dialogue is word for word from the comic strip and the songs are "adorable."
"It's about Snoopy and his life and his hardships," she says.
Seven Peanuts characters are in the show; along with Snoopy, there's Charlie Brown, Linus, Lucy, Peppermint Patty, Sally and Woodstock. The actors range in age from 16 to 49.
The show is 90 minutes without an intermission, but it goes fast, says Rudolph. She says ages 4 and up can enjoy the show.
"The kids will like the characters because they are funny. And we're doing it in the smallest theater, so the audience is never too far away from the actors. You could reach out and touch them."
The show will be staged in the round, an arrangement the theater hasn't done in about a decade, says Rudolph. And just in case your child does get restless, Rudolph says "that's the beauty of our seats, they make it easy to escape."
Along with some of your favorite Peanuts characters, the play offers some of your favorite moments. One of Rudolph's favorites, she says, is the classroom scene. It features the teacher talking, or rather not talking, in the signature wa-wa-wa tones of Schulz's adults. The kids sing "Edgar Allan Poe," a song about the fear of the teacher calling on you when you don't know the answers: Please don't let her call on me today, please/Mentally I'm begging on my knees, please/Please, and I'll do anything you say/Only, please don't let her call on me today.
Th show runs until Nov. 22, but don't wait to buy seats. Three shows are already sold out.
