I have been fortunate to attend a few shows at the Ensemble Theatre over the past years. The last two were “Alice in Wonderland” and “Snow White” and my girls loved them both. So when I had the chance to see this year’s “Around the World in 80 Days” I was a definite yes. I was invited as a blogger to a preview show.  My dad was in town over Thanksgiving weekend so we took him with us as well.

Have you ever been somewhere with your kids and within 10 minutes you were thinking to yourself, “Oh no. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.” Well, I admit that was my first thought. I knew nothing about “Around the World in 80 Days” – never read the book, never saw the movie. I knew it wasn’t a “Disney Princess” type of show, but wasn’t sure what exactly to expect. So a few minutes in I wasn’t sure if my kids would get into it.  I was enjoying it, but not sure about them. At their young ages, it is often “easier” at a live production of something that they have some history with…like Annie Jr. Charlotte loved seeing that at the Children’s Theatre because she knew all the songs and the story’s plot. A few other kids did NOT enjoy it but knew nothing about it. They had trouble following along. That was my fear 10 minutes into “Around the World in 80 Days”.

Ha! I was worried for NOTHING. The kids loved it…including Henry! We talked about the story’s plot at intermission to make sure they understood what was going on and they were following better than I imagined. Stella LOVED it. She couldn’t wait for intermission to be over to see if Fogg would complete his journey in time. And her favorite character? Fogg’s love interest, the princess, of course!

Not your typical holiday production.  There is no nutcracker, no Santa, no Scrooge. However, if you are looking for a fabulous family-friendly production this holiday season, I highly recommend “Around the World in 80 Days”.  You will not be disappointed. For more information, visit the Ensemble Theatre website.

What shows and/or productions do you plan to see this holiday season?

{I received tickets as a blogger for this viewing, but all opinions are my own!}