ACTIVE NOV | DEC 2019 AUDIENCEguide Produced in partnership with Children’s Theatre Company, Minneapolis Adapted for stage by BARRY KORNHAUSER Based on the books by DON FREEMAN Directed by KATHRYN VAN METER AN INTERVIEW WITH DIRECTOR KATHRYN VAN METER A WORD WITH THE PLAY'S DESIGNERS SYNOPSIS | THEATRE ETIQUETTE | VOCABULARY LIST | SUGGESTED READING 1 SEATTLE PREMIERE TABLE OF contents 3 SYNOPSIS STATE LEARNING 4 STANDARDS 6 AUDIENCE MEMBER GUIDE 7 LOST AND FOUND! 8 AN INTERVIEW WITH DIRECTOR Adapted for stage by BARRY KORNHAUSER KATHRYN VAN METER Based on the books by DON FREEMAN Directed by KATHRYN VAN METER SUGGESTED READING RECOMMENDED FOR 9 NOV 19 – DEC 29 PATRONS 3 YEARS & OLDER PLAYFUL ADVENTURE A WORD FROM OUR 10 DESIGNERS Late at night while the world sleeps, a curious bear named Corduroy searches every inch of 12 DRAMA IN ACTION a department store in pursuit of his missing button. Leaving behind delightful messes, a Night 13 CORDUROY VOCABULARY Watchman is on the case to discover the origin of this playful destruction. All the while, a young girl JUMP START 13 dreams of bringing Corduroy home as a new cuddle companion. Don Freeman’s beloved picture book 14 ACTIVITY PAGES comes to vibrant life in this fun and highly physical adaptation, sure to delight all audiences. synopsisBE WARNED: THIS SYNOPSIS HAS SPOILERS n Freeman's Department Store a little girl, Lisa, and her Mother pass through the Toy Department. Lisa becomes enamored with a teddy bear she sees on the shelf. The bear, Corduroy, wears green overalls at the end. The Night Watchman once again renews his vow to catch the intruder. withI a button missing. Lisa pleads with her mother to let her take the bear Lisa enters with four trash cans, careful not to spill any garbage. She home. Her mother refuses, saying she’s already spent too much money. The empties each can into a larger bin, but in doing so, throws away her mother’s two leave without Corduroy. flowers. Noticing her mistake, she attempts to replace the flowers into the The Department Store's Night Watchman begins his rounds. Upon his exit, flower pot. Lisa smashes down the garbage in the large bin by getting into the Corduroy comes to life and decides to find his missing button. bin and jumping up and down on the trash. Unbeknownst to Lisa, this action At home, Lisa pleads to her mother to buy the toy bear. They discuss the breaks the bin and when she lifts the bin to take it out, the trash falls out of the possibility of Lisa having more household responsibilities in exchange for an bottom of the bin. She tries to fix the bin with glue, but the glue makes some advance on her allowance. trash stick to her hands. Just then, Lisa’s mother enters and sees the mess, Meanwhile, Corduroy returns to the Toy Department searching for his lost the broken bin, and the flowers. She notices the trash stuck to Lisa’s hands. button. After a couple of attempts to find it among other toys, he investigates Upset, she tells Lisa to forget about Corduroy and sends her to bed, dejected. the escalator. The escalator and Corduroy engage in a comedic tussle. The Night Watchman carries Corduroy to the Toy Department and leaves Lisa empties her piggy bank to count its contents in her bedroom. him there, continuing his search for the supposed intruder. Undeterred, Her mother enters and they discuss what chores Lisa can do to earn the Corduroy resumes his own pursuit. Throughout the scene, Corduroy revisits aforementioned advance on her allowance. Lisa shows her mother that departments he’s already been to and searches new departments, making she’s made a bed for Corduroy, but her mother does not believe this messes and staying one step ahead of the Night Watchman. Eventually the qualifies as a “chore,” so Lisa agrees to start doing her own laundry. Night Watchman catches up to Corduroy, but still has no idea that Corduroy Corduroy discovers a button very similar to the one he’s missing attached to is the perpetrator. At his wits end, the Night Watchman exits with Corduroy a mattress. For several minutes he uses different tactics to remove the button in tow. from the mattress, eventually succeeding, but immediately losing his grasp on the Lisa says her prayers before going to bed, her mother listens at the button, which is lost to the escalator. Before Corduroy can chase after the button, door. Lisa prays for God to bless her and all those who love her, and to help the Night Watchman enters and Corduroy hides. Seeing the mess Corduroy made, Corduroy find a loving home. the Night Watchman suspects there is an intruder. While cleaning the mess, the The Night Watchman believes hiding Corduroy in a crate will keep the intruder Night Watchman finds Corduroy and vows to find the intruder right after he from continuing his reign of terror. He leaves Corduroy in the crate and exits returns Corduroy to his rightful place in the Toy Department. to find a hammer and nails with which to seal the crate shut. Once he’s gone, Lisa shows her mother that she’s finished with the laundry. She pulls out Corduroy gets out of the crate and looks for his button. The Night Watchman her mother’s favorite wool sweater, which has shrunk to the size of a doll’s returns, but sees Corduroy missing. As the two pursue their respective shirt. Lisa promises to make it up to her mother. After her mother leaves, Lisa objectives, they constantly pass each other in a series of near misses. decides she’ll make amends by scrubbing the entire bathroom. Lisa and her mother have breakfast together. Lisa’s mother tells her they Corduroy enters the Appliance Department to search for his button. At are going downtown to Freeman’s and that Lisa will be bringing Corduroy first he mistakes a couple objects as buttons, but after a messy to-do he home. When Lisa asks about her mother’s change of heart, her mother tells realizes they are not buttons. He accidentally sets off another series of messy her that Corduroy needs a good home and no one else will love Corduroy the events, which includes turning on a vacuum cleaner that chases him all over way Lisa will. They hug and exit. the department floor, a stove top burner, and a fan that blows continuously Corduroy and the Night Watchman are still at it, this time back in the throughout the scene. Hearing the noise, the Night Watchman enters as Toy Department. Through a series of events, Corduroy finds his button, but Corduroy hides. The Night Watchman interacts with the different appliances the lights get switched off, which creates confusion as Corduroy loses the looking for the intruder and attempting, mostly in vain, to turn them off. button while trying to hide from the Night Watchman. The vacuum has been During his search, he once again finds Corduroy. The Night Watchman renews making its rounds and appears now just in time to suck up the button. The his vow to catch the intruder and return Corduroy to the Toy Department. vacuum, however, has been running so long that it is about to burst. Despite As Lisa scrubs the bathroom, her mother enters and is mildly impressed both Corduroy’s and the Night Watchman’s best efforts, the vacuum explodes with what Lisa has achieved. She asks Lisa to draw her a bath. Lisa obliges, sending debris everywhere. The button is destroyed in the melee. Just then, but drops the cap of the bubble bath soap into the drain. She tries to retrieve the store opens for the day, and the Night Watchman’s shift has ended. Perhaps the cap by fashioning an apparatus out of a bandage and dental floss. As Lisa he’ll retire. Without a button, Corduroy believes himself to be undesirable, is attempting the rescue, her mother enters wearing her bathrobe. She chides and he puts himself into a trashcan. Moments later, Lisa enters looking for Lisa for wasting floss and the two discuss other chores Lisa can do. They Corduroy, finding him nowhere. The Night Watchman returns with a janitor’s decide she can collect the trash. As Lisa makes one final attempt to recover cart. Lisa asks if he’s seen the bear, to which he responds that he has seen the the cap from the drain, she accidentally knocks her mother into the tub. bear and never wants to see him again! Once the Night Watchman exits, Lisa Corduroy continues his search, this time in the Toiletries Department. He finds Corduroy in the trashcan and, ecstatic, goes to pay for him. unravels mounds of toliet paper in his search. The Night Watchman sees the mess Lisa tells her mother that she’d like to invite some classmates over to meet and notices the toilet paper trail leading him in the right direction. He manages to Corduroy. Lisa’s mother thinks that’s a fine idea. Lisa fixes Corduroy’s button grab ahold of the toilet paper strand, which he pulls to himself, finding Corduroy and exits to do some chores. ■ 3 STATE LEARNING standardsCorduroy touches on many themes and ideas. Here are a few we JUMP START believe would make good Discussion Topics: creativity, hope, and ARTS friendship Theatre Arts | Anchor Standards 1–6 We believe that seeing the show and using our Active Audience Visual Arts | Anchor Standards 1–2 Guide can help you address these 21st Century Skills: ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS • Creative Thinking • Collaboration Language Standards | L.1 • Critical Thinking • Perseverance Speaking and Listening Standards | SL.1, SL.3, SL.5, SL.6 • Communication • Growth Mindset Writing Standards | W.1, W.2, W.3, W.8 We also believe that seeing the show and using the AAG can help educators meet many of the Washington State Learning Standards.