Maybe Something Beautiful

Co-produced byChicago Children’s Theatre & Negaunee Music Institute at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Words byF. Isabel Campoy & Theresa Howell
Illustrations byRafael López
Narration & bilingual script byJasmin Cardenas
Featuring Quinteto Sinfónico, Op. 122Miguel del Águila
Featuring Son de la BrujaJosé-Luis Hurtado
Featuring LibertangoAstor Piazzolla (arr. Jeff Scott)
Zell Music DirectorRiccardo Muti
FluteJennifer Gunn
OboeScott Hostetler
BassoonKeith Buncke
HornDavid Griffin
Clarinet (guest musician)Jonathan Gunn
LibrarianMark Swanson
Puppet Director & DesignerWill Bishop
Director of Photography (Puppetry)Jeff Paschal
Puppet AssistantMiranda Betancourt
Executive ProducerHeidi Lukas
DirectorsJacqueline Russell & Jon Weber
Director of Photography (Production)Todd Rosenberg
Audio ProducersCharlie Post, Mark Alletag, & Connor Boyle
Video EditorTobin Del Coure
Production ManagerJeffrey Stang
Production CoordinatorMichael Manning
Camera OperatorDana Navarro
Camera AssistantsCharles Braico, Michael Lavin, & Joe Sherman

Maybe Something Beautiful is a bilingual virtual production featuring murals, music, and puppetry from Chicago Children’s Theatre and the Negaunee Music Institute at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO).

Inspired by the award-winning book by F. Isabel Campoy and Theresa Howell, illustrated by Rafael López, the piece brings together five CSO musicians performing classical works by Latino composers, English/Spanish narration, and colorful, playful puppetry to tell a true story about how even the smallest artists among us can accomplish something big.

Kids of all ages will love and be inspired by Mira, a young girl who decides to paste her drawing of a sun on one of the dark walls of an alley. The force of that sun’s attraction sparks a transformation of the streets and the lives of Mira and her neighbors, forever.

Maybe Something Beautiful is inspired by Rafael and Candice López, two exceptional people committed to art and social justice who turned the darkness of their neighborhood into a world of hope and beauty by turning the alleys of San Diego’s East Village into art canvases. Today, the Urban Art Trail remains a physical symbol of one community’s triumph against the forces of social decay. The story has since been shared with millions of young readers through the popular picture book and is now being brought to online audiences thanks to this new collaboration.

“Chicago Children’s Theatre and the CSO have created something beautiful here. The CSO took the magic wand from Rafael López and transformed color into music, art to sound, ‘oneness’ to community. The script tells the story the way many people in our country express themselves today. I embrace it completely. Chicago Children’s Theatre’s beautiful puppetry and Jasmin Cardenas’ warm voice are charming to follow through the streets of San Diego, or actually, any street now.”

– F. Isabel Campoy, co-author, Maybe Something Beautiful

Produced in collaboration with the

For Educators

View English Study Guide

Ver Guía De Estudio De Español

Please reach out with questions to Dexter Ellis, Director of Education and Community programs at dexter@chicagochildrenstheatre.org.

 

This performance of Maybe Something Beautiful is a gift from our supporters’ families to yours!

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