No transcripts, no college loans, just fun at Segerstrom’s ‘University of Wonder and Imagination’
Scholars may disagree over the value of a college education, but those interested in exploring the world’s vast mysteries have a much cheaper option next weekend as Segerstrom Center for the Arts presents “The University of Wonder and Imagination.”
Tailored to young learners ages 7 and up, the program takes place at the Costa Mesa complex’s Samueli Theater with two afternoon shows Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m. and features an interactive element that lets audiences choose their own adventures in a fun and fast-moving format.
Lead character Professor Bamberg uses the wonders of “telecamology” to transport instructors from a secret university in Northern Ireland’s Armagh directly to Costa Mesa, where they’ll share a curriculum of mind-bending puzzles designed to entertain and amaze.
Science, art and “mathemagic” converge in three classes led by lecturers working in front of a giant LED wall screen that guides lessons. Participants are called upon to work with instructors to figure out tricks and solve problems.
The show is produced by Cahoots of Northern Ireland — a Belfast production company whose past Segerstrom Center performances include “Secrets of Space,” “Shh! We have a Plan” and “Egg” — and is funded by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the state agency Culture Ireland.
Created during the COVID-19 pandemic as a virtual performance, it was adapted for a live audience by artistic director Paul McEneaney and is currently on the last leg of a U.S. tour that will wrap in Costa Mesa.
Gary Crossan, an associate producer for Cahoots NI, said the high level of audience participation in the pandemic-era virtual shows was such a success, creators took great care to capture that magic in the live format.
“We get kids up on the stage to help us with the tricks, and it’s all the audience suggesting what we should do next,” Crossan said Thursday. “No two shows will ever be the same, because the audiences are never the same.”
Ahead of the roughly one-hour program, which on Sunday includes American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation, attendees may enjoy an additional free hour of activities for kids in the Samueli Theater lobby. “Graduates” of the university will be sent home with materials to reproduce tricks and activities at home.
Talena Mara, vice president of education for Segerstrom Center of the Arts, said the festivities are part of a Family Series that aims to increase access to theatrical experiences for Orange County families and provide engaging, enriching activities for parents to do together with children.
“It’s our hope here at Segerstrom to put incredibly meaningful and important family programs out into the arts ether for people to see in their community,” Mara said Thursday. “Sometimes we do stuff that’s pure fun — we just want them to come play or dance — but more often than not, we’re trying to address issues we’re all going through.”
Although next weekend’s production of “The University of Wonder and Imagination” marks the conclusion of the show’s American tour, it’s not the last Orange County audiences will see of Cahoots NI.
Segerstrom officials have commissioned an exclusive family production, a take on the brothers Grimm fairytale “The Bremen Town Musicians,” that will premiere during the Costa Mesa complex’s 2024-25 season and appear at the Belfast International Arts Festival next year.
“We love their work so much, we figured it would be a wonderful place for us to do our first big full-family theatrical commission,” Mara said. “The exciting thing about it is that it’s our show. It’s going to open here first, then next year it will travel all over the country.”
Entrance into next weekend’s University of Wonder and Imagination requires no transcripts, applications or costly tuition (aside from the $20 ticket price). There is but one prerequisite, according to Crossan.
“The whole point of it is about being excited and full of imagination, so come in with open minds and open hearts and be prepared to have a lot of fun,” he said.
For more, visit scfta.org/shows-events.
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