Next Gen Events 2025-26
Offered at no charge thanks to the generosity of many donors and special support from the following organizations:
Note for Educators and Parents: Next Gen is proud to bring these shows to our community. Target grades are approved by artists, based on content, theme, and audience experiences. You are always invited to learn more about our events; feel free to reach out with questions.
Registration requests from schools within the GLCFA 5-county service area (Antrim, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Emmet, and Otsego) will have priority. However, if you are a school outside the service area but have interest in a Next Gen event, please complete a request for registration; you will be placed on a waiting list and invited to come if/when shows do not "sell out." Bus reimbursement is available to schools within the GLCFA service area. Thank you for understanding.
Take a moment to explore the theater and see what the space looks like before your visit—watch the video HERE.
A Christmas Carol
SOLD OUT
Friday, December 5, 2025
12:30PM - 1:30PM—Grades 7-12
Broadway veteran Allen Fitzpatrick brings Dickens’ classic to life in a one-man performance, transforming a bare stage into 26 distinct characters. Following in Dickens’ own tradition of public readings, Allen invites audiences to imagine the world anew while highlighting the story’s enduring themes—celebration, generosity, and a call to confront poverty. With a 50-year career alongside legends like Sondheim, Lloyd Webber, and Patti LuPone, Allen’s artistry makes this A Christmas Carol an intimate and powerful experience.
Educational Resource IEducational Resource II
The Acting Company - A Midsummer Night's Dream
Registration opens Tuesday, December 9 at 8:00PM
Friday, February 6, 2026
10:00AM - 11:00AM—Grades 9–12
12:30PM - 1:30PM—Grades 6–8
Focus: AP Lit • English & Literature • SEL; book-based
A rapturous, fresh take on one of William Shakespeare's most popular and widely performed plays, The Acting Company's A Midsummer Night's Dream is a captivating coming-of-age story that will surprise and delight! In this fast-paced, crowd-pleasing comedy, a mischievous fairy creates chaos for four young lovers and a troupe of amateur actors in an enchanted forest at night. Bursting with mirth, music, magic, and mayhem, this uplifting tale of illusion, love, and transformation comes to life with an electric cast of New York-based artists.
Educational Resource Educational Resource IIEducational Resource III
Interlochen Center for the Arts' Romeo and Juliet
Registration opens Tuesday, December 9 at 8:00PM
Friday, February 20, 2026
12:30PM - 1:30PM—Grades 5–7
Focus: English • Literature • ELA • History (book-based)
Witness Shakespeare’s tragic tale of star-crossed lovers as Interlochen’s Academy Dance Division brings Romeo and Juliet to life in a ballet adaptation. Sparks fly when Veronese teenagers Romeo and Juliet meet at a party, but their whirlwind romance is threatened by their families’ long-standing feud. Set to Sergei Prokofiev’s iconic score, with original choreography by Director of Dance Joseph Morrissey and striking scenic design, Romeo and Juliet is a timeless reminder of the potent forces of both love and hate.
Please note: the student matinee is a shortened version of the ballet. We hope you’ll consider returning for the evening performance to enjoy the full production (tickets sold separately).
Educational Resources Coming Soon!
MARIACHI HERENCIA DE MÉXICO
Registration opens Tuesday, December 9 at 8:00PM
Thursday, March 5, 2026
10:00AM - 11:00AM—Grades 4-8
12:30PM - 1:30PM—Grades PreK-3
Focus: Spanish • Geography • Social Studies
A new generation takes mariachi to exciting new heights! Two-time Latin GRAMMY® nominee Mariachi Herencia de México—an ensemble of talented young musicians aged 18 to 32—pushes the boundaries of tradition while honoring the past and celebrating the present. Founded in 2016 by César Maldonado, the group brings the vibrant energy of Mexican music and culture to every performance, offering students a dynamic introduction to mariachi.
From traditional favorites to contemporary interpretations, they deliver an electrifying experience that showcases the richness of Mexican heritage and inspires a love of music in audiences of all ages. ¡Viva el mariachi!
Student Playwright Reader's Theater (SPRighT)
Competition open to Grades 6-College
No registration—see Call for Submissions
Next Gen is excited to host its second Student Playwright Reader’s Theater (SPRighT) competition! This year’s theme is “This is me” – a celebration of stories about who we are and how our differences are also our superpowers. This competition is open to all students in our service area (Antrim, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Emmet, and Otsego counties) in grades 6 – college.
Now offering 2, optional, Saturday afternoon workshops at the Great Lakes Center for the Arts to support students (and educators) through participation in the Student Playwright Reader's Theater (SPRighT) competition. Facilitators (theater and educator peeps) will be at the Center to inspire you and to support you. All are welcome at both workshops - come to one, come to both!
What do I need to take to the workshops?
- Bring a notebook/pen and/or a laptop/tablet.
- Take along whatever work you've already done in preparing to submit a play - and if you haven't started yet, that's okay, too. You can start at the workshop!
NOTE: Use of AI is not acceptable in this writing competition; don't cheat yourself out of the opportunity to express yourself in your special way. AI is NOT you, regardless of how much information you feed it. WE WANT YOU AND YOU ALONE. You are WAY more awesome than AI!
Saturday, January 17, 2026, 1:00 - 2:30PM: Workshop 1: "Start me up!"
Come explore SPRighT with other students and educators while learning more about how to prepare, execute, and submit a short, reader's theater-style play. Be prepared to get your creative juices flowing as we have fun with improv activities and engage in spontaneous reader's theater challenges. Expect laughter. Facilitators will lead conversations around this year's theme, This is Me - reframing challenges as superpowers. Time will be provided for support of all stages of the writing process - brainstorming, outlining, storyboarding, dialogue writing, or draft editing. You are welcome to join us no matter where you are in the writing process, including not yet being IN the writing process! You are also welcome to join us if you are just curious and want to learn more. No previous playwriting required. Come let us help you "start it up!"
Saturday, February 14, 2026, 1:00 - 2:30 PM: Workshop 2: "Shape me up!"
Ready to write? Seeking feedback about your concept? Stepping through editing? Ready to submit? Join us at the Center again to 'workshop' your ideas and writing in small groups with other students and educators. Come with what you've got - complete or not - and experience your work onstage or in small-group performances by your peers; hearing it performed helps refine your editing. This workshop is focused on helping shape and refine your ideas and writing, so come let us help you "shape it up!"
Call for Submissions Learn More about SPRighT
Educational Resources Coming Soon!
The Boy Who Grew Flowers
Registration opens Tuesday, February 10 at 8:00PM
Friday, April 10, 2026
10:00AM - 11:00AM—Grades 3-5
12:30PM - 1:30PM—Grades PreK-2
Focus: SEL • Children’s Literature • Music & Dance • Book-Based Themes of Diversity, Empathy & Celebrating Individualism
The Boy Who Grew Flowers, based on the picture book by Jennifer Wojtowicz, written and adapted by Mara McEwin and choreographed by Emily Bunning, is the story of a young boy, Rink Bowagon, who lives on top of Lonesome Mountain with his unusual family of rattlesnake tamers and shape-shifters. The townspeople agree that Rink's family is quite strange, but they are unaware of Rink's spectacular gifts. Whenever the moon is full, Rink sprouts beautiful flowers from his head. When a new girl, Angelina, moves to town, Rink discovers friendship, acceptance, and the joy of truly belonging.
The Singing Zoologist: Animals Rock!
Registration opens Tuesday, February 10 at 8:00PM
Wednesday, May 20, 2026
10:00AM - 11:00AM—Grades K–4
12:30PM - 1:30PM—Grades K-4
Focus: Science • Biology • Music
Get ready to sing, move, and learn with The Singing Zoologist, Lucas Miller. Animals Rock is a high-energy, multimedia program that celebrates the amazing world of animals through music, storytelling, and science. From counting the spots on an ocelot to learning how monarch butterflies grow and migrate, students explore animal adaptations, behaviors, and defenses. Audience favorite Fifi the Ferocious brings laughs and learning with a hilarious lesson on how animals protect themselves.
Co-presented with The Cheboygan Opera House
Frequently Asked Questions
about Next Gen Events
I submitted a registration request—why weren’t seats reserved for my class?
Next Gen does its best to accommodate all interested educators, but space is limited. Sometimes, you request registration but do not end up with your students registered. Instead, you may find yourself on a waitlist. If a show receives more registration requests than it has available seats, there are three main reasons you may not have been able to attend:
- “Spread the love.” All Next Gen programming costs are paid for by donations; these gifts allow teachers, schools, and students to participate at no cost. Next Gen works diligently to welcome students from the five counties we serve – and as many schools as possible – across each academic year out of respect for the donations that have been given. If a school who has attended frequently is trying to get seats and the show has more requests than available seats, Next Gen may prioritize a school who has not been able to attend in that academic year.
- “It’s a puzzle.” Next Gen strives to fill the theater for each show. Sometimes the size of your group is just too big for the number of seats remaining; when that happens, the next group whose seat request fits availability gets the seats. It’s a tricky puzzle that must balance registration request order and the need to fill the theater out of respect for donors whose gifts deserve to be maximally shared.
- “The no-show effect.” Because donors are paying for schools and students, Next Gen takes attendance very seriously. There are often waitlists for shows. If a school or group fails to show after registering, that school or group is moved to the end of the line for registration requests for the school year in which the no-show happened. Please don’t register and then fail to attend; it’s unfair to both donors and other schools who really wish to come.
What if some of my students don’t fall within the recommended grade range—can they still join?
The grade ranges provided on the website and schedule are guidelines based on information available through the artists’ websites and agents. We customize to best fit the Next Gen schedule each year. If you wish to take a class outside the grade range for a given show, that is up to you; remember that the bulk of the audience will be from the grades included in the suggested grade range. EX: If you’d like to take your preschool class to The Singing Zoologist, you may request registration for them even though the suggested grade range is K–4. We would not encourage bringing a middle or high school class, given the age, size, and maturity differences between older students and the target audience for this program.
Why are there some events for which no registration is available?
The “On the Road! Show” series, which takes touring theater into schools, must be arranged up to one year in advance. Therefore, registration is not available for these events. If you’d like your school to be considered for an upcoming “On the Road! Show,” please email rachel@greatlakescfa.org and type “WE WANT IN FOR ON THE ROAD!” in the subject box. The Artist in Residence program is participation by invitation; Next Gen is making its way around the school districts across all five counties we serve. These invitations go out 1-1.5 years in advance, and the in-school portion of the Artist Residencies always take place the third week of April.
Past Events
Cirque Mechanics: Tilt!
Step right up to the dazzling world of Tilt! A Circus Thrill Ride!
Journey back to the 1980s and experience a high-flying homage to America’s iconic amusement parks. Bursting with acrobatics, aerial feats, juggling, and a dose of nostalgic charm, this theatrical circus adventure brings the sights, sounds, and spirit of the era to life. At the heart of the spectacle is a marvel of man-powered engineering: a giant Ferris Wheel, surrounded by incredible mechanical creations that reimagine classic rides and games of the time. The story follows a weary amusement park worker, worn down by the grind and long disconnected from the joy around him. When he confiscates a guest’s boom box, a playful chase erupts—an exhilarating whirlwind of stunts, surprises, and laughter. By the end, the pursuit transforms into a touching moment of connection, proving that even in the unlikeliest of places, shared joy can bring us together.
Human[kind] Cinema Series: Wonder
Wonder, the touching story of 10-year-old Auggie whose extreme facial deformities make it challenging to attend public school for the first time, pulled in a surprising $27 million during its opening weekend. At the core of its success is the heartwarming message of embracing one’s uniqueness and overcoming prejudice. Come see how our differences are also our superpowers.
