SPECIAL EVENTS

Downtown Galveston becomes a “Kid Zone” as The Grand 1894 Opera House presents the 16th Annual Grand Kids Festival on Saturday, April 2, 2011.

An annual Island favorite, the festival will feature three downtown blocks filled with fun family entertainment and activities. Hosted by The Grand 1894 Opera House as a community “friend-raiser”, this celebration of families and folk arts will be held from 10am-5pm on Postoffice Street, between 20th and 23rd streets, in historic downtown Galveston.

The festival will feature several outdoor entertainment stages as well as entertainment on The Grand’s indoor stage, a story-telling tent, an artisans’ tent, and a host of activity booths “guaranteed to spark the imagination and creativity in kids of all ages.” Festival food and beverage booths are also available.

Six entertainment areas await you at THE GRAND KIDS FESTIVAL! Professional family entertainers, student dance groups, musicians, bands, gymnasts and more fill the stages. An artisans tent will introduce you to the wonders of handcrafting – quilting, wood-turning and working with clay. Take in a show by puppeteer Don Harms and his marionettes or relax in our storytelling tent for a good yarn by Shelly Tucker. Join the Tipi-tellers in our giant tipi and learn about native Americans.

An annual highlight of the festival is the production staged by Missoula Children’s Theatre (MCT). This year’s show is King Arthur’s Quest.  Missoula Children’s Theatre will audition and cast 50-60 area students the Monday prior to the festival and will present this musical adaptation during the festival on The Grand’s stage.

Created as an extension to The Grand’s children’s programming and designed to raise an appreciation and awareness of the importance of fine arts for children, The Grand Kids Festival features performances by professional entertainers geared toward family entertainment as well as presentations by student dance, music, band, cheer groups and more form the Galveston/Houston area.

The festival is supported in part by Target, Yaga’s Children’s Fund, Kathy G. McGovern, the Permanent Endowment Fund of Moody Memorial First United Methodist Church, Frost Banking Investments Insurance, Alice Taylor Gray Foundation, Jamail Galveston Foundation, and KUHF 88.7 FM Radio and also receives funding through the Galveston Hotel/Motel Tax.

Festival founding sponsors are Mary Ainslie, The Gladys B. Foundation in honor of Robert Richard Thornton, Lawyer; the Harris and Eliza Kempner Fund, Bank of America, and the Park Board of Trustees of the City of Galveston.

For more information about entertainment and activities scheduled, or to request a vendor or performer packet, contact festival staff at 409.770.5056 or email kidsfest@thegrand.com.