All the World a Stage

Eckerd Theater Company actors Gi Sung and Jack Holloway portray all the characters in this story-theater retelling of C. S. Lewis' The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (adapted by le Clanché du Rand). Photo courtesy of ETC.

 Shakespeare meant, perhaps, that every moment of our lives is played for a cosmic audience.

Eckerd Theater Company, on the other hand, reads those words as an invitation to perform wherever -- library meeting rooms, school gyms, auditoriums. While they love having a full stage with lights and sound, give them a few square yards of bare floor and -- poof!

Suddenly, George Washington, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and other historical characters parade through a teenager's rec room when she questions why she should bother casting her Vote! Or a fairy tale village appears with its inhabitants learning about cooperative economics by making Stone Soup & Dragon Dumplings.

Or we glimpse a child's-eye view of Terezin concentration camp where about 15,000 children under the age of 15 were interred -- and only about 100 survived. One of ETC's most requested productions is I Never Saw Another Butterfly, which tells the too-seldom-told story of these young Holocaust victims.

This week, ETC -- resident theater company at Clearwater's Ruth Eckerd Hall -- presents an adaptation of C. S. Lewis' The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe to Tampa Bay area audiences (see schedule below) -- for free! Which makes it a doubly good offer. ETC performs locally only a few times each year. Most of their time is spent touring schools and libraries in other towns and cities along the East Coast.

ETC, like many other non-profit organizations, has struggled with recent funding cuts. Tax-funded public grants have shrunk along with the economy. Private donations haven't always filled the gap. Nevertheless, Ruth Eckerd Hall's governing boards have affirmed their support of ETC, and the troupe is preparing for the 2010-2011 season.

ETC isn't the only professional theater company in the Tampa Bay area. American Stage Theater Company, The Gorilla Theater, Jobsite Theater, Inc., Salerno Theatre Co., Inc., Spanish Lyric Theatre, and Stageworks Theatre offer various types of theater experiences. Additionally, we have a strong community theater base (see pp. 135 for a list), including the St. Petersburg Little Theatre, Florida's oldest, continually operating community theater.

But ETC is the area's only children's theater company, and therein lies the proverbial rub because children's theater, like children's literature in general, sometimes is seen as less than "real" theater. Make no mistake: While sometimes minimalist in setting, ETC distills classic writings from Aesop, Poe, and others into potent productions that do not just introduce children to theater but also recall adults to the essence of theater.

See ETC's The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (recommended for ages 8 and up -- 40 minutes plus Q&A afterward) this Thursday through Saturday at:

• Thursday, June 24, 2 p.m. at the Palm Harbor Library (2330 Nebraska Ave. - 34683)
• Friday, June 25, 2:30 p.m. at the Safety Harbor Library (101 2nd St. N. - 34695)
• Saturday, June 26, 2 p.m. at the Clearwater Main Library (100 N. Osceola Ave. - 33755)