'Dog Loves Books' Musical for Kids March 1 at Westport Country Playhouse

An announcement from Westport Country Playhouse:

Westport Country Playhouse’s Family Festivities Series will present “Dog Loves Books,” a new musical based on The New York Times bestseller by Louise Yates, on Sunday, March 1, at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Produced by ArtsPower, the show is recommended for ages 5 through 8. Running time is approximately one hour. Tickets are $20.

“Dog Loves Books” is a new musical about the irresistible Dog who loves everything about books. In fact, he loves books so much that he decides to open up his own bookstore. Once the store opens for business, no customers come. Dog is alone in his store. But, he soon realizes that when he is surrounded by books, he is never alone.

Dog begins to read the books in his store and discovers that when customers finally come in to his store, he knows exactly which books to recommend. ArtsPower’s delightful new musical celebrates the power of the imagination and the satisfaction that comes in sharing books with others.

ArtsPower, celebrating its 30th anniversary, is one of America’s preeminent nonprofit producers and presenters of professional theater for young and family audiences. With over 500 performances annually, ArtsPower has amassed an audience of more than 13 million people in 49 states.

The Playhouse’s Family Festivities Series is presented on selected Sundays from November through March. Upcoming is “Curious George,” on Sunday, March 29, about the inquisitive, lovable little monkey of books, movies, and the award-winning PBS television show.

At each Family Festivities performance, Westport Country Playhouse will once again host a book collection for Read to Grow, Inc. Bins will be located in the Playhouse lobby for donations of gently used and new children’s books which will be given to families with limited access and to community resources that serve them in the greater Fairfield County area.

Family Festivities Corporate Sponsor is Pitney Bowes. Family Festivities Partner is Darlene Krenz. The series is also supported in part by Westport Young Woman’s League.

Everyone in the audience requires a ticket. For more information or tickets, call the box office at (203) 227-4177, or toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, off Route 1, Westport. Tickets are available online 24/7 at www.westportplayhouse.org. Stay connected to the Playhouse on Facebook (Westport Country Playhouse), follow on Twitter (@WCPlayhouse), orview Playhouse videos on YouTube (WestportPlayhouse).

About Westport Country Playhouse

Westport Country Playhouse, named Theater Company of the Year by The Wall Street Journal, is a nationally recognized, not-for-profit, professional theater under the artistic direction of Mark Lamos and management leadership of Michael Ross.

The Playhouse creates five live theater experiences, produced at the highest level, from April through October. Its vital mix of works---dramatic, comedic, occasionally exploratory and unusual---expands the audience’s sense of what theater can be.

The depth and scope of its productions display the foremost theatrical literature from the past---recent as well as distant---in addition to musicals and premieres of new plays. During the summer, the Playhouse is home to the Woodward Internship Program, renowned for the training of aspiring theater professionals.

Winter at the Playhouse, from November through March, offers events outside of the main season---Family Festivities presentations and Script in Hand play readings. In addition, businesses and organizations are encouraged to rent the handsome facility for their meetings, receptions and fundraisers.

As an historic venue, Westport Country Playhouse has had many different lives leading up to the present. Originally built in 1835 as a tannery manufacturing hatters’ leathers, it became a steam-powered cider mill in 1880, later to be abandoned in the 1920s.

Splendidly transformed into a theater in 1931, it initially served as a try-out house for Broadway transfers, evolving into an established stop on the New England straw hat circuit of summer stock theaters through the end of the 20th century.

Following a multi-million dollar renovation completed in 2005, the Playhouse became a state-of-the-art producing theater, preserving its original charm and character.

Today, the not-for-profit Westport Country Playhouse serves as a cultural resource for patrons, artists and students and is a treasure for the State of Connecticut. There are no boundaries to the creative thinking for future seasons or the kinds of audiences and excitement for theater that Westport Country Playhouse can build.

Westport Country Playhouse’s upcoming 2015 season: “The Liar,” by David Ives, May 5 – 23, an update of Pierre Corneille’s classic comedy, weaves an increasingly intricate web of lies that leads to hilarious romantic misadventures, directed by Penny Metropulos; “And a Nightingale Sang” by C. P. Taylor, June 9 – 27, paints a gently funny and moving portrait of a working-class family in Northern England as the world rushes toward the brink of war in 1939, directed by David Kennedy, Playhouse associate artistic director; the world premiere of A. R. Gurney’s “Love and Money,” pointedly explores the trials of class, family, legacy, and race, July 21 – August 8, directed by Mark Lamos, Playhouse artistic director; Alan Ayckbourn’s “Bedroom Farce,” August 25 – September 13, offers a delightful comedy confection about the messiness of adult relationships, directed by John Tillinger; and Arthur Miller’s “Broken Glass,” October 6 – 24, celebrates the playwright’s 100th birthday with his powerful drama about New York Jews suffering from afar as they read accounts of atrocities in Nazi Germany, directed by Mark Lamos.

For more information or tickets, call the box office at (203) 227-4177, or toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, off Route 1, Westport. Tickets are available online 24/7 at www.westportplayhouse.org. Stay connected to the Playhouse on Facebook (Westport Country Playhouse), follow on Twitter (@WCPlayhouse), or view Playhouse videos on YouTube (WestportPlayhouse).