Pittsfield, MA–Berkshire Theatre Group (BTG) and Kate Maguire (Artistic Director, CEO) are excited to announce BTG PLAYS! 2021-2022 Touring Show, Magic Tree House: Dinosaurs Before Dark KIDS, based on the book, Magic Tree House: Dinosaurs Before Dark by Mary Pope Osborne. This musical features a book and lyrics by Will Osborne and Jenny Laird, music and lyrics by Randy Courts, with direction and choreography by Kathy Jo Grover and musical direction by Erin White. BTG PLAYS! 2021-2022 Touring Show is sponsored by Lead Sponsor, Berkshire Bank.
BTG PLAYS! Touring Show is a part of Berkshire Theatre Group’s year-round education program, which reaches 11,000 school children annually. Beginning in October and running through the school year, this production is appropriate for elementary and middle school aged children and family audiences and is designed to introduce students to the excitement of live theatre. Touring to schools and venues all throughout Berkshire County and surrounding towns with a local company of artists, a question and answer session with the actors follows each performance.
A magical tree house transports Jack and Annie to the land of the dinosaurs in this adaptation of the best-selling book series. Magic Tree House: Dinosaurs before Dark KIDS is an adaptation of the first of Mary Pope Osborne’s award-winning fantasy adventure books from the Magic Tree House book series, which has sold more than 100 million copies and is available in more than 100 countries around the world. Jack and Annie’s treehouse transports them back in time to the age of the dinosaurs, where the siblings courageously learn that things are not always what they seem.
Siblings, Jack and Annie, discover a tree house full of books while exploring one afternoon. Jack looks through a book about dinosaurs and wishes he could see a real one. Suddenly, the wind begins to blow and the tree house starts to spin wildly. When it finally stops, Jack and Annie open their eyes to find they have been transported back to the time of the dinosaurs. Jack and Annie have a harrowing adventure, befriending some dinosaurs along the way, as they try to make their way back home.
Safety Protocols
Berkshire Theatre Group’s staff and artists have all been fully vaccinated. Additionally, BTG staff and artists are required to test weekly for COVID-19. Prior to entering into a school for a performance, BTG artists and staff must present a negative COVID-19 test result to BTG management before going on tour with the company. BTG actors and staff will be fully masked during the set up and load in, during the actual performance of Dinosaurs Before Dark (it’s part of the costume design), and breakdown and load out. BTG’s stage manager of Dinosaurs Before Dark is also one of BTG’s COVID-19 Compliance Officers.
About Berkshire Theatre Group
The Colonial Theatre, founded in 1903, and Berkshire Theatre Festival, founded in 1928, are two of the oldest cultural organizations in the Berkshires. In 2010, under the leadership of Artistic Director and CEO Kate Maguire, the two organizations merged to form Berkshire Theatre Group (BTG). Berkshire Theatre Group’s mission is to support wide ranging artistic exploration and acclaimed performances in theatre, dance, music and entertainment. Every year, BTG produces and presents performances to over 68,000 attendees and, through our Educational Program, serves over 11,000 Berkshire County school children annually. In July
2020, Berkshire Theatre was the first company in the United States to earn approval from Actors’ Equity Association to produce a musical (Godspell) in the wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic.