Tarradiddle Players spread the joy of the arts

It's called the "cafetorium," a sizeable room located near the heart of Harrisburg Elementary School that, as the name suggests, serves as both a communal gathering space - or auditorium - and a cafeteria.

On a blustery morning in mid-January, hundreds of Harrisburg students from the third-, fourth- and fifth-grade classes sit cross-legged and stare intently as actors from the Tarradiddle Players bounce across the cafetorium's moderate stage performing "New Kid," Dennis Foon's touching play about an immigrant family seeking acceptance in America.

After the show, with the students shuffling back to their classrooms and workers setting up tables before the lunchtime rush, Harrisburg Elementary's assistant principal of instruction, Marie LaBoy, reflects on the theatrical program and the impact she knows it will have on the student body.

"Going to the theater anymore can be so expensive for families," LaBoy said. "And so if we don't bring the arts in, this may be the students' only exposure to live performance."

That's precisely why the four-member Tarradiddle troupe - the resident touring company for the Children's Theatre of Charlotte - spends 11 months of the year delivering 275 to 300 performances to 150 schools throughout the Southeast.

"One of the things that we enjoy is knowing that we are bringing something to people that may not get it," said cast member Darlene Parker, who performs alongside Sal Garcia, Leslie Ann Giles and Stephen Seay.

"I don't think any of us are from very large cities," Parker continued. "I grew up in a very small town ... and the only theater company I saw was the touring company that came through my school. We never forget those experiences, so it's great to be able to give that back to other kids."

The start

Founded in 1971 by Davidson theater staple Connie Welsh, Tarradiddle Players maintains a headquarters in uptown Charlotte at ImaginOn: The Joe & Joan Martin Center.

But the troupe spends the bulk of its time visiting schools.

Its focus stays on the Carolinas, but the Players will travel as far south as Georgia and as far north as Virginia to accommodate interested schools.

"They're on the road all year long," said company manager Steven Ivey, who helped found the troupe with Welsh and performed as a Tarradiddle member for decades before accepting an administrative role.

In its earliest days, Tarradiddle Players visited schools in Davidson and Cornelius - where Welsh had strong community connections - but demand eventually required them to travel through Mecklenburg and Cabarrus counties.

On a performance day, the members arrive on campus, build the sets, perform one of the four shows in its current repertoire, break down the sets, pack the van and leave for the next day's school.

"Simplicity rules," Ivey said about his mobile troupe, "because (the Players) have to go into different situations every single day and adapt to the chosen school. But it always was an adage of Connie's, and I hope we're maintaining it to this day, that theater for children should be as good, or better than, theater for adults."

With that in mind, the Tarradiddle Players' programs usually plug into an ongoing curriculum at the schools.

"There's actually a guide that (Children's Theatre) sends before the troupe even gets here," LaBoy said, so teachers can introduce noteworthy concepts before the performance and then tie discussion points together once the students have returned to the classroom.

Ivey said the reach of Tarradiddle Players has extended over the years to include a younger audience. Preschools have begun hosting the Players. "But in a lot of the rural communities that we visit," he said, "kids as high as fourth- or fifth-grade might be having their first experience. I can remember specifically, on more than one occasion, teachers writing back saying, 'You can't believe what an impact you had on such-and-such a person. This student has always sat in the back of the class and has never participated in much of anything. And now after your performance, we can't shut them up.'"

Art exposure

Exposure to the arts isn't always an option. LaBoy said students at Harrisburg Elementary take weekly art classes, and some students attend dance and music performances at the Cabarrus Arts Council.

But with the struggling economy, the cost of bussing children to an event and paying for their admission to a show has become too great.

"This is how we choose to expose our children to these types of performances," LaBoy said about the Tarradiddle visits.

Meanwhile, a neighboring Cabarrus County school almost had to cancel its annual visit.

On Feb. 4, the Players will perform two shows at Wolf Meadow Elementary School in Concord.

"We've been going there for at least 15 years," Ivey said.

But a lack of finances nearly forced Wolf Meadow administrators to postpone the appearance. Thankfully, a $12,500 grant given to the Players by the Wachovia Wells Fargo Foundation in October 2009 allows for half-price Tarradiddle experiences - in-house or on tour - for low- to moderate-income elementary schools in the nine counties surrounding Mecklenburg County.

"We hope to touch at least 5,000 kids with that grant," said Ivey.