Golden
Thread's Fairytale Players
present Princess in the Mirror
The Girl Who Lost
Her Smile
Magical Journeys
Education theatre performances
incorporating story, music and dance from the Middle East
“Once upon a time, in
the ancient city of
Baghdad,
there was a young girl
called Jehan.When Jehan smiled
by day, the sun shone
brightly.When she smiled
at night, the stars
glittered and sparkled…”
Princess in the Mirror,a visually colorful performance with dynamic story-telling, dance and music. The story begins in the land of ancient Israel, when three brothers compete to win the heart and hand of a princess. They are set on an adventurous quest, traveling through ancient lands to find the treasure that will please the princess the most. The princess must choose one of them, but which one? Princess in the Mirror is adaptation of an old, traditional Jewish story, found in the anthology “While Standing on One Foot” by Nina Jaffe and Steve Zeitlin. The story’s plot turns on a dilemma, which audience members are encouraged to reflect on. Each member of the audience will have the chance to compare their own answer to the solution told by the sages.
The Girl Who Lost Her Smile is presented in the traditional Iranian story telling style of Naghalli, including some poetry in Persian and full, visually rich performance values. Adapted from a children’s book of the same name by Karim Alrawi and inspired by a Rumi poem, the fable transports us to the ancient city of Baghdad where we find Jehan, a young girl, has lost her smile. Artists from around the world are brought to help restore the girl’s smile through magic and entertainment. But the solution lies elsewhere as only those watching very closely will find out!
The Girl Who Lost Her Smile engages audiences through text, movement, authentic music and dance, and also creates language, geography and cultural connections to the Middle East. A Study Guide is available that discusses specific cultural traditions, vocabulary, and dramatic activities for further understanding of the play. The performance naturally includes selected audience members in major roles and as an option, the Fairytale Players can incorporate a post-show participatory Persian folk dance workshop, or activities designed to foster creativity, imagination and impart basic theatre skills.
Magical Journeys, a costumed and fully-produced storytelling series, seeks to introduce new cultures through a variety of Middle Eastern legends and tales and presents a compact and economical alternative for smaller group presentations. A variety of Middle Eastern destinations are visited in successive journeys, over the course of a number of sessions, with two costumed storytellers as guides – music, dance, and puppetry are utilized in various tales along with audience participation.
* * *
Before the first session, a visual arts component is initiated with a Map in which the children explore each destination visited. You are free to choose the locales of your choice – Iraq is represented with a simplified storytelling version of The Girl Who Lost Her Smile, and Princess in the Mirror is set in ancient Israel. Other proposed destinations include: Armenia, Iran, Turkey, Palestine, and Egypt.
Click here to see the Magical Journeys Map: cover, inside
* * *
Highly encouraged by our past success with the Norooz Story and An Iranian Fairytale, Golden Thread Productions has created an ensemble to develop a repertory of carefully crafted performances rooted in stories, music and dance from the Middle East. Having successfully forged partnerships with organizations including: The Asian Art Museum, the Bay Area Discovery Museum, the San Francisco TheatreFest, the San Diego World Theatre Festival, Alameda County Libraries, the Park Day School, La Pena Cultural Center and the KZV Armenian School, Golden Thread remains dedicated to uncovering and presenting stories and themes of universality and social relevance.
* * *
Upcoming Performances:
7 Nov 2009
Berkeley Central Library
2090 Kittredge St., Berkeley, CA
Princess in the Mirror
10:30am
18 Nov 2009
Berkeley Public Library
2940 Benvenue Ave., Berkeley, CA
Princess in the Mirror
3:30pm
21 Nov 2009
Potrero Hill Parents
Thick House, 1695 18th St., SF, CA
Princess in the Mirror
4:00pm
Currently booking for
fall/winter tour!
We can partner with your organization to build a package that meets your educational, production and cost needs. Please contact Ileana for pricing inquiries and for bookings.
Golden Thread's
Fairytale Players
feature
Lily Balsen, Vida
Ghahremani, Sarah Al-Kassab, Suraya Keating, Jasper Patterson, Lisa Tateosian, Torange Yeghiazarian and Eleni Zaharopoulos.
Watch a Video (of our original Hoopoe Bird puppet)!
Photos of the
Fairytale Players
Princess in the Mirror at Berkeley Public Library:
Torange Yeghiazarian, Artistic Director / Serge Bakalian, Managing Director
450 Florida Street, San Francisco, CA 94110 / 415.626.4061 / information@goldenthread.org
Princess in the Mirror,a visually colorful performance with dynamic story-telling, dance and music. The story begins in the land of ancient Israel, when three brothers compete to win the heart and hand of a princess. They are set on an adventurous quest, traveling through ancient lands to find the treasure that will please the princess the most. The princess must choose one of them, but which one? Princess in the Mirror is adaptation of an old, traditional Jewish story, found in the anthology “While Standing on One Foot” by Nina Jaffe and Steve Zeitlin. The story’s plot turns on a dilemma, which audience members are encouraged to reflect on. Each member of the audience will have the chance to compare their own answer to the solution told by the sages.
The Girl Who Lost Her Smile is presented in the traditional Iranian story telling style of Naghalli, including some poetry in Persian and full, visually rich performance values. Adapted from a children’s book of the same name by Karim Alrawi and inspired by a Rumi poem, the fable transports us to the ancient city of Baghdad where we find Jehan, a young girl, has lost her smile. Artists from around the world are brought to help restore the girl’s smile through magic and entertainment. But the solution lies elsewhere as only those watching very closely will find out!
The Girl Who Lost Her Smile engages audiences through text, movement, authentic music and dance, and also creates language, geography and cultural connections to the Middle East. A Study Guide is available that discusses specific cultural traditions, vocabulary, and dramatic activities for further understanding of the play. The performance naturally includes selected audience members in major roles and as an option, the Fairytale Players can incorporate a post-show participatory Persian folk dance workshop, or activities designed to foster creativity, imagination and impart basic theatre skills.
Magical Journeys, a costumed and fully-produced storytelling series, seeks to introduce new cultures through a variety of Middle Eastern legends and tales and presents a compact and economical alternative for smaller group presentations. A variety of Middle Eastern destinations are visited in successive journeys, over the course of a number of sessions, with two costumed storytellers as guides – music, dance, and puppetry are utilized in various tales along with audience participation. 
