Pip’s Island, a One-of-a-Kind Theatrical Adventure for Kids & Families, Begins Previews on March 11, 2019 & Officially Reopens on March 21, 2019

Located on West 42nd Street, the Groundbreaking Interactive Show Combines Exploration, Empowerment and Education, Where Kids Are the Heroes

Pip's Island is back! New and exciting adventures from Pip and the gang are coming your way this winter. Make sure to stay connected with us on social for your exclusive look at all the magic!

New York, NY (January 10, 2018) – Pip’s Island returns to New York City with public previews starting on March 11, 2019 and officially reopens on March 21, 2019, establishing a permanent home for its groundbreaking immersive entertainment walking adventure for kids at 400 West 42nd Street. After making its world premiere in November 2016 in NYC for a limited engagement, the three founders including sibling-duo Rania and Rami Ajami and Creative Director Walter Krudop are thrilled to bring the next chapter of the Pip’s Island adventure to a custom-built flagship attraction in the heart of Manhattan. Combining immersive sets, original narrative, exploratory spaces and stimulating audiovisual content, the brand's mission is to provide a space where children are encouraged to find their inner spark and to positively impact the world around them. 

"Pip's Island is as real as 'make-believe' gets for children," says Walter Krudop, Pip’s Island Creative Director. "They literally feel like they are entering a live video game and are pulled right into the story."

Audiences will be guided through an hour-long inspirational “hero's journey” by live performers, puppets, interactive set-pieces and animated characters. As a walking adventure, they will navigate a series of challenges and one-of-a-kind games to save the Island from darkness and restore harmony to the land. Along the way, they will collect signature achievement badges, called "sparks" on Pip’s Island, which parallel many elements of the STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics) curriculum. 

As the audience moves forward, the story unfolds, the music escalates, the characters change, the challenges grow, and the young audience is soon engaged in an uplifting adventure that will leave them with a lasting sense of self-esteem and personal empowerment. 

"Pip’s Island is a special blend of the creative arts including interactive space design, performance art, music, animation, digital gadgetry and play; all brought together with seamless storytelling and audience engagement," explains Rania Ajami, Pip’s Island’s Chief Creative Officer. CEO Rami Ajami continued, "We exist to cater to kids of today who take a 360 multi-sensory, multi-platform approach to engaging with their world."

Pip’s Island Fun Facts:

  • Join the expedition to unlock a secret tree portal that transports you to the shores of a magical island!

  • Strap on your Legendarium and collect all five of your sparks. 

  • Hop on board Pebble's Cloud Rover and navigate stormy skies!

  • Travel underground and help Finn outwit the dastardly moles!

  • Grab a treat at Grumble Plum's bakery and help build one of her giant specialty cakes.

  • Sing along and even take a moment to meditate with Shelly, the princess of the underwater seas. 

 In addition, Pip’s Island will offer easy-to-book, all-inclusive birthday party packages of up to 50. For more information, email birthdays@pipsisland.com.

Pip's Island is a time-ticketed experience designed for ages 4-10, although grown-ups looking to reconnect with their childhood sense of wonder are also encouraged to sign up for an expedition! 

The show lasts 60 minutes and it’s recommended to arrive 15 minutes in advance of the ticketed time. Pip’s Island runs daily Wednesday through Monday and is closed on Tuesdays

Tickets are $59 for adults and kids at the box office or $49 online. Discounts are available for schools and groups, please contact at customerservice@pipsisland.com.

About Pip’s Island

Pip’s Island, a new kids entertainment company that is disrupting the industry, elevating standards and empowering children, is launching its first in a series of live events called Pip’s Island: The Lighthouse Rescue. The experience blends storytelling, interactive games, animation, music, and play to truly immerse young explorers in a unique island universe. In addition to a live entertainment experience in New York, the company has created a rich universe of digital content that it will be rolling out over multiple media channels including books, animation, gaming and additional live adventures at our flagship location, as well as destinations around the world.

For more information, visit www.pipsisland.com and follow on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram @pipsisland.

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College and Anton Krilloff present The Snow Maiden

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College will team up once again with producer Anton Krilloff present a Russian holiday fairy tale, The Snow Maiden (Снегурочка), on Sunday, December 20, 2015 at 4pm. Ticket prices range from $35 to $60 and can be purchased at BrooklynCenter.org or by calling the box office at 718-951-4500 (Tues-Sat, 1pm-6pm). The running time is 1 hour and 10 minutes with no intermission. The Snow Maiden is performed in Russian with English subtitles.

In this magical Russian Christmas version of the Cinderella story, Grandfather Frost (the Russian Santa Claus) transforms a poor young girl into the beautiful Snow Maiden after proving her worthiness. This delightful children's extravaganza incorporates traditional Russian songs, dances and elaborate costumes to create a winter wonderland. At the end of the performance, every child in the audience will receive a Christmas candy gift box. 

The festivities begin with a musical interlude of Russian folk music played by the ensemble Barynya, followed by entertainment and riddles by skomorokhi, traditional Russian clowns who historically traveled from town to town, performing in the streets and at fairs, singing comedic songs and acting out satirical sketches. As the pre-show comes to a close, Grandfather Frost (the Russian Santa Claus) is introduced, who acts as a type of narrator for the musical fairy tale to follow.

The Snow Maiden premiered in 2008 in Moscow. The creative team on this show includes an honored Russian writer and director Boris Boreyko (The Bremen Town Musicians), director and choreographer Andrey Ivanov, and costume designer Tatyana Kudryavtseva. All costumes were created by the Mariinsky Theatre tailors. www.thesnowmaiden.com.

Visit BrooklynCenter.org for a complete season lineup.

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts

Whitman Theatre at Brooklyn College

2 train to Brooklyn College/Flatbush Avenue

Online orders: BrooklynCenter.org

Box Office: 718-951-4500, Tuesday-Saturday, 1pm-6pm

New York Theatre Ballet performs Legends & Visionaries 2015 at Danspace Project

New York Theatre Ballet will perform Legends & Visionaries 2015 from June 18-20, 2015 at Danspace Project, 131 E. 10th Street, NYC.

Performances: Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8:00pm.

Tickets are $20 ($15 for Danspace members), and are available online at www.danspaceproject.org or by calling OvationTix/TheaterMania at 866.811.4111.

New York Theatre Ballet will perform Richard Alston's Such Longing, Frederick Ashton's Capriol Suite, the World Premiere of Gemma Bond's Cat's Cradle, a new, as-yet-untitled work by David Parker, and Antony Tudor's Dark Elegies.

Richard Alston's Such Longing is danced to the music of Chopin, not pretty waltzes or the great virtuoso fireworks but achingly beautiful meditations from his Nocturnes and Etudes. Filled with longing for Chopin's Polish homeland, this lush and lyrical music floods through tender duets and introspective solos for two couples. Frederick Ashton's Capriol Suite will be performed by the full company.

"Capriol Suite, Ashton's earliest ballet, was choreographed in 1930 for Rambert's students, before she had a company. The music, by Peter Warlock, is based on themes from the 16th Century treatise Orchesographie, by Thoint Arbeau. As well as the music, the book contains descriptions of such dances as the Pavane and the Galliard. Ashton did not follow these, but made some use of the illustrations and other pictorial sources. The ballet is an imaginative recreation of old dances rather than an authentic reconstruction. Originally danced by four couples, the ballet was danced by the Sadler's Wells Theatre Ballet in 1948. It is the version that is the basis of a later revival staged by Elisabeth Schooling and Sally Gilmour, former members of the Ballet Rambert," said David Vaughan.

Elena Zahlmann will perform a solo by David Parker and Dark Elegies will feature Rie Ogura, Elena Zahlmann, Carmella Lauer, Choong Hoon Lee and Stephen Campanella. 

"New York Theatre Ballet's move downtown is both a symbol of rebirth and renewal," said Diana Byer, artistic director of New York Theatre Ballet. "With three different programs in three different venues, Legends & Visionaries 2015 is a revolutionary season."

New York Theatre Ballet will celebrate their first season in their new home, and honor longtime friends Richard Alston and Valda Setterfield at a Garden Party on opening night, Thursday, June 18, 2015 at 6pm at St. Mark's Church-in-the-Bowery, 131 E. 10th Street, New York City. The evening concludes with a performance at 8pm of NYTB's Legends & Visionaries 2015 at Danspace Project, 131 E. 10th Street, NYC.

Tickets are $200 ($100 for children), and include both the party and the performance. Please contact admin@nytb.org to purchase.

These performances are part of DANCE:Access, a self-production series administered by Danspace Project that serves independent choreographers and dance companies.

Magic of Ballet: with Spring performance from Ballet Academy East

John Jay College of Criminal Justice of The City University of New York, an international leader in educating for justice, offers a rich liberal arts and professional studies curriculum to upwards of 15 000 undergraduate and graduate students from more than 135 nations. The Theater is dedicated to the creation and presentation of performing arts programming of all disciplines with a special focus on how the artistic imagination can shed light on the many perceptions of Justice in our society.

Ballet Academy East presents its Spring Performance from May 15-17, 2015 at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College of Criminal Justice at 524 W. 59th Street, NYC which the myNewYorkeye team had pleasure to attend on May 17th, 2015.

The exciting parents, guests of lovely kids, all gathered in a nice hall to enjoy the event. Kids were very happy, but a little bit nervous while running and getting ready for the big moment which finally started like this:

"All the lights turned completely off and shortly they switched on focusing only on stage which reflected the magical blue and pink tones and beautiful kids standing there. Music and all the moves of dances were so light that one could feel the spring all over. During the first few performances, there were number of very young dancers and I got to know from Julia Dubno - Founder and Director, that the youngest dancers are about 7 years old!

Then ocean started to move the crazy waves and dances were even crazier. As girl’s hair were not folded they felt like a part of storm and created spectacular waves of motion filling the hall with the spring craziness. Performances were mesmerising and very creative with a sweet modern touch. Also the costumes were pretty nice and perfectly matching with the atmosphere their dance created."

Many guests were holding flowers for performers that was such a nice view to see in NYC, as not for all events you get to see so many flowers. We feel very happy for the kids, their teachers and all the guests who had the opportunity to enjoy this wonderful event, including myNewYorkeye.