(Gananoque, ON – December 6, 2024) The Young Company is bringing a family treat for all ages to the stage at the Firehall Theatre in Gananoque. Pirates Don’t Babysit! has everything that the young and young at heart could want in a theatre experience.

“The Young Company is a partnership with the district school board and the Thousand Islands Playhouse (TIP) and we are doing a show for young audiences,” said Isabella Paul, Young Company member.

This is not your usual school play. The script is filled with fun, adventure, and unexpected surprises. Nine-year-old Jenny (Presley Tamblin) is now a big sister and she hates it. Her mum (Leviathan Rieder) makes her stay home and look after the baby when she’d much rather be out doing something exciting – anything exciting. One day when Mum goes out to do some shopping, pirates come to the door and Jenny finds herself in the middle of an adventure that she never expected. They need her to help them find a buried treasure, but she has conditions – they have to let her become a pirate and join their crew and most of all, they have to help babysit. These pirates know nothing about babies or babysitting, but they really want that treasure. Hilarity and misadventure ensue as they screw everything up but come out on top in the end.

Beginning in 2022, this is a new version of the Young Company program. Originally it involved university students who would bring the show to a number of different locations for children to see. The new version takes place in Gananoque with the high school students and the plays themselves are performed at the Firehall Theatre.

“There are 17 students involved this year who earn school credits and attend the program full-time from September – January,” Allison Hess, Education and Engagement Manager at TIP. “Some students are even coming from schools outside of Gananoque to be part of the program.

“With this new program, instead of the play coming to them, elementary school kids get a chance to actually come out to a real theatre and see a production that has been created just for them. It’s a special treat that many of them have never had before and we hope it encourages them to want more in the future.”

“I feel like every year it gets more and more about students participating because this is my third year now,” said Paul. “In the past it’s been everything run by the mentors and we’re kind of just extra bodies, but now it feels really feels like we’re really creating this and they’re just the ones with experience to help and support us. Year one I was on props and lighting, the second year I was stage manager, and this year I am stage manager and choreographer. I’m a recreational dance teacher at Flashpoint Dance Studio in town so it’s something that I’ve done before that’s fun and I really enjoy it.”

“I feel actually being there and learning all these different things like making the wig was pretty interesting,” said Maya Watson, another member of the group. “Seeing how we did the hair, and we design everything and all the different steps that go into it – there’s so much that I just never realized before and each step is so much more important to make sure it’s perfect.”

She went on to talk about little details like you don’t necessarily notice when you’re watching the play but make all the difference in the visual final effect. While she was out ill at one point, she spent 80 hours making part of one costume by hand so it would be exactly right.

“The TIP Young Company is a for-credit program providing Real-World-Learning experiences for secondary school students in the Upper Canada District School Board,” said Hess. “The program teaches technical skills and knowledge in theatre production including scenic carpentry, costuming and sewing, scenic paint, sound and lighting for theatre, performance, stage management, theatre design, and props creation. All learning takes place on-site at the Thousand Islands Playhouse in Gananoque, Ontario and is led by industry professionals. Students then take their skills and apply them in the building and performance of a play for young audiences presented in TIP’s Firehall Theatre.”

Pirates Don’t Babysit! was written by Barb Scheffler and directed by Seanna Kennedy with community performances on Saturdays December 7 and 14 at 1 p.m. Elementary students from numerous schools will also be brought to the theatre to see the play free of charge. The Festival of Lights and other community partners have made it possible for tickets to be free. Tickets can be reserved online at https://www.1000islandsplayhouse.com or by calling the Box Office at 613-382-7020.