So we have some very exciting news. . . . Our beloved Godine children's book The Lonely Phone Booth by Peter Ackerman and illustrated by Max Dalton has been turned into a play and will be performed by the Manhattan Children's Theatre! Performances will run from April 7–29th, 2012 on Saturdays and Sundays at 12pm and 2pm. To reserve tickets please call (212) 352-3101.If you're not familiar, the book is the story of one of the last remaining phone booths in New York City, the Phone Booth on the corner of West End Avenue and 100th. Everyone used it — from ballerinas and girl scouts, zookeepers and birthday clowns, to cellists and even secret agents! The Phone Booth was so beloved that people would sometimes wait in line to use it. Kept clean and polished, the Phone Booth was proud and happy . . . until, the day a businessman strode by and shouted into a shiny silver object, "I'll be there in ten minutes!" Soon everyone was talking into these shiny silver things, and the Phone Booth stood alone and empty, unused and dejected.
How the Phone Booth saved the day and united the neighborhood to rally around its revival is the heart of this soulful story. In a world in which objects we love and recognize as part of the integral fabric of our lives are disappearing at a rapid rate, here is a story about the value of the analog, the power of the people's voice, and the care and respect due to those things that have served us well over time. If you're a New Yorker, the real Phone Booth, which is still standing at West End Avenue and 100th Street, is worth a field trip!
A special book signing event will be held on April 15th immediately following the 2pm performance and will feature a conversation with the actors, gifts for the kids, cake, crafts and of course an appearance by author Peter Ackerman and an opportunity to get your copies of the book signed.
Author Peter Ackerman is a New York City native and co-writer on the animated movies Ice Age and Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.
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