Blue Apple Players

We’re so excited today to have Heather Burns, Educational Director for the Blue Apple Players, give you some great information about this amazing group.

Who are the Blue Apple Players?
Blue Apple Players is a non-profit children's theatre...
...operating locally in Louisville, KY, since 1976. Most people know us for our original educational musical plays that have been traveling the region for years - reaching thousands of youth. We also have an education department that specializes in hands-on drama workshops for all ages. While we want to ignite a spark for theatre, academic and social growth is the real mission behind our work. Our programs have raised test scores, helped children cope with the death of a parent and divorce, reduced teen pregnancy rates, taught lessons about history, helped children to make friends and learn to speak out, and the list goes on and on. We provide a nurturing and non-competitive environment for new and ongoing learners to explore drama.
 
What can we expect in your Summer Storytime series?
We're delighted to announce a number of FREE Storytime performances, thanks to our partnership with SpringFest (Saturday, May 19th at 10:30am and 11:15am) and the Louisville Free Public Library (Fern Creek 7/3 at 2pm, Jeffersontown 7/10 at 2:30pm, St. Mathews 7/14 at 11am and Bon Air 8/7 at 2:30pm). We'll be doing a fun and educational StoryTime workshop at each location. It's a wonderful activity for families. Audiences can expect to see two experienced Storytellers engaging children in some interactive activities and sharing entertaining stories. Every Storyteller is different; each has their own collection of stories. But you can be sure that a Blue Apple Player storyteller chooses their story for a special reason - sometimes it's a moral one that touches the heart, sometimes a particularly funny or thoughtful plot, and other times it's something that involves the children in helping to tell the story. It's not uncommon to see the adults as interested as the kids!
 
How can listening to and telling stories help children?
StoryTime encourages interest in books and reading. Many of the stories we tell also appear in books; so children are excited to go find the book in the library and discover how our version was similar or different. Children participate in the workshop as active listeners - practicing comprehension and language development, while creating sound and movement along with our activities, guided by the Storyteller. It's fun for them to be an active participant, but it also really engages the brain in making connections. Blue Apple storytellers are really good at adapting the program to the age of the students in the audience - so the program evolves depending on the needs in front of us. Sometimes we may be leading a physical activity that will have kids practicing their gross and fine motor skills; other times, we may engage them in a discussion on their observations of the literary structure of the story. We have stories from all over the world; so, children learn about different cultures through the telling of stories, too.