Streaming of The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus has ended. Thank you for watching!

MTC’s production The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus was scheduled to tour to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in April and May – and while COVID-19 led us to cancel the tour, we are thrilled that we can still share the production with the larger world through a pay-what-you-can, pay-per-view digital stream!

May 27 through June 28
Watch at home! Enjoy this pay-what-you-can viewing of The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus, in partnership with HEC Media.

When school is out, there’s nothing to do and the desert sun beats down hot. So when a walking, talking and surprisingly well-dressed coyote shows up, Sheila and her friends jump at the chance to embark on the adventure of a lifetime! Filled with magical realism and surprises at every turn, this funny story of friendship and imagination brings the desert landscape to life. A cautionary tale about our impact on the environment and the creatures who live in it, this is a storytelling tour-de-force in a new, original play.

This digital shoot was filmed by HEC Media at the Lee Auditorium, Missouri History Museum, October 13, 2019.

A percentage of the proceeds from this pay-what-you-can pay-per-view digital stream will support the artists who helped create this production. After completing your online booking, you will receive a unique one-time-use digital link providing you access to view the production. Note: all unique links will expire on Monday, June 29.

Cast

DUST CLOUD, Jamie McKittrick

Production Team

PLAYWRIGHT, Eric Coble

DIRECTOR, Julia Flood

STAGE MANAGER, Jimmy Bernatowicz

PHYSICAL DRAMATURGY, Tia Shearer

PRODUCTION ASSISTANT/ASM/PROPS, Jacob Cange

PRODUCTION MANAGER/TECHNICAL DIRECTOR, Erik Kuhn

SCENIC DESIGN, David Blake

COSTUME DESIGN, Dominique Rhea Glaros

LIGHTING DESIGN, Jayson Lawshee

SCENIC PAINTER, Cristie Johnston

WORKSHOPPED AND PRESENTED BY METRO THEATER COMPANY AS A REHEARSED READING IN APRIL 2018 AT THE JOHN F. KENNEDY CENTER FOR PERFORMING ARTS AS PART OF THE NEW VISIONS/NEW VOICES 2018

Produced as part of a Rolling World Premiere with Childsplay Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona
Dwayne Hartford, Artistic Director | Steve Martin, Managing Director

THE GIRL WHO SWALLOWED A CACTUS is produced by special arrangement with THE GERSH AGENCY, 41 Madison Avenue, 33rd Floor, New York, NY 10010.

Learn More

Webinar with Creative Team
In partnership with Educate.Today, watch this webinar featuring a lively discussion with The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus playwright Eric Coble, Metro Theater Company’s artistic director Julia Flood, and actor Jamie McKittrick. Plus, enjoy a special excerpt from a new tabletop theater version of the play that might inspire you to create theater at home!

Q&A with Creative Team
Enjoy this special Q&A with Metro Theater Company artistic director Julia Flood, playwright Eric Coble, and actor Jamie McKittrick.

The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus Educator Guide

The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus Playbill

The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus is a fantasy that aims to change reality, Alive Magazine

The Kennedy Center Performance Guide

Educate.Today’s “Celebrating Theater at Home: The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus”

This production was presented at 41 venues across the St. Louis region and at the Bartlett Performing Arts Center in Tennessee in September, October, and November 2019. It was scheduled to perform at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC in April and May 2020, but its DC tour was cancelled due to COVID-19.

From Metro Theater Company Artistic Director, Julia Flood

We began this journey of imagination two years ago when playwright Eric Coble first told us about an idea that had been rattling around in his head for about five years. He wondered if Metro Theater Company might be interested in exploring it with him. The idea was rooted in Eric’s childhood adventures with a bunch of friends and a pile of junk in the New Mexico desert.

We said, yes, let’s do it!

In the spring of 2018, the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC selected Metro Theater Company and The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus as one of only eight national and international theater companies invited to develop new work for young audiences as part of the New Visions/New Voices 2018 Festival of New Work.

This spring, Metro Theater Company’s production of The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus was scheduled to return to the Kennedy Center, as part of their performances for young audiences series and to launch the New Visions/New Voices 2020, but was canceled due to COVID-19.

The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus was featured during the TYA/USA Virtual Conference 2020.

In addition to school performances, Metro Theater Company presented this production at these FREE public performances:
Oktoberfest, September 29, 2019
Missouri History Museum, October 12 & 13, 2019
Missouri Botanical Garden, November 7, 2019
St. Louis Public Library, Central Library, November 9, 2019