MN
Miranda Nation
  • Theatre
  • Class of 2016
  • Winfield, Kansas

Miranda Nation in Emporia State production of 'The Arkansaw Bear'

2014 Jul 14

Miranda Nation of Winfield, Kansas, is part of cast and crew presenting "The Arkansaw Bear," the final show of the Emporia State University Summer Theatre's 60th anniversary season. Written by Aurand Harris, the beloved children's show is celebrated worldwide as a sensitive and family-friendly depiction of life and death.

Saddened and bewildered at her grandfather's approaching death, Tish runs to her "special tree." There, in a world of fantasy that appears when she wishes on a star, she meets the world's greatest dancing bear. He is old, like her grandfather, and is running away -- from death.

In trying to help him, she begins to understand the meaning of both life and death, which helps her to cope with her own sadness. The play blends realism and fantasy, pathos and humor. It is delightfully theatrical, with music, magic and dance, and enthusiastically applauded by children's audiences and family audiences.

Nation plays Tish.

Last produced by ESU Theatre in 1987, "The Arkansaw Bear" is an important work by Aurand Harris, America's foremost playwright for young audiences. It is under the direction of Theresa Mitchell and the setting is designed by May 2014 alum Mark Warner. Emily Kasprzak, the theatre director at Neosho County Community College in Chanute, is designing the imaginative costumes. Kasprzak is a 2009 graduate of ESU Theatre who earned her MFA from Michigan State University.

Sparkling with entertainment while also dramatizing -- with poignancy -- a universal truth, "The Arkansaw Bear" runs July 23-25 at 7:30 p.m. in King Hall. The final performance will be a 2 p.m. matinee on July 26. All performances are in the Karl C. Bruder Theatre in King Hall. Individual tickets are available from the university box office at 620-341-6378.