January 19, 2010

Contact:   Bill Giduz

Davidson Community Players children's theatre, The Connie Company, in collaboration with the Davidson College Department of Theatre will present the children's tale, Annavel and the Funny Little Man: A Rumpelstiltskin Tale, in eight performances from January 22 to January 24.  

Shows will be Friday, Jan. 22, at 4:30 p.m. and 7 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 23, at 10:30 a.m., 2:30 p.m., and 4:30 p.m., and Sunday, Jan. 24, at 12:30 p.m., 2:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. Tickets are $7, and all shows are in The Barber Theatre of Cunningham Theatre Center  on campus. For information and tickets, call 704-892-7953. Reservations are strongly encouraged.

Part of the proceeds will support the Constance Welsh Scholarship for graduate studies in children's theatre, which honors the late founder of Davidson Community Players and The Rupert T. Barber, Jr. Scholarship.

The play is an adaptation of a Grimm Brothers' fairy tale written by the late Davidson theatre professor Rupert T. Barber, Jr. The plot concerns a bragging father, a poor king, a lot of straw, and a funny little man. The show features elaborate costumes and surprising plot twists intended to capture the imagination of children age four and above.  

Melissa Ohlman-Roberge, artistic director of Davidson Community Players and The Connie Company, directs a cast comprised of Davidson College students.

The title roles are Amelia Lumpkin '13 as Rumpelstiltskin and Jenny Estill '10 as Annavel. Other members of the cast are Ryan Chiles '12, Katherine Fahy '12, Lauren Frantz '12, Benjamin Heimfeld '12, Will James '11 , William Koster '12, Jennifer Nicholson '12, Lori Pitts '12, Ana Rodriguez '12, Kathleen Voegtli '13, Evan Weltge '13 and Alicia York '12.

Davidson is a highly selective independent liberal arts college for 1,800 students located 20 minutes north of Charlotte in Davidson, N.C. Since its establishment in 1837 by Presbyterians, the college has graduated 23 Rhodes Scholars and is consistently regarded as one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country. Through The Davidson Trust, the college became the first liberal arts institution in the nation to replace loans with grants in all financial aid packages, giving all students the opportunity to graduate debt-free. Davidson competes in NCAA athletics at the Division I level, and a longstanding Honor Code is central to student life at the college.
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