2025-26 Student Matinees
We support Arts in Education!
Over 3,500 Students and Educators attended Student Matinees in 2024-25! We presented FREE Workshops as schools from Cape Elizabeth to Farmington for students in Grades 1-12.
Make sure you sign up for Education Emails so you can plan affordable Arts activities for your students.
SIGN UP HERE to get information about our FREE workshops and programs, student matinee performances, and to receive invitations to our FREE No Teacher Left Behind Preview performances.
All tickets to Student Matinees are $7 each.
We offer special morning student matinee performances held at The Public Theatre featuring post-show talkbacks with the actors and director. Student rates are also available for our public performances. To help you make the most of your experience, free study guides are available prior to attending and pre or post-show workshops about the production are available upon request. Teach your students the habit of participating in the cultural life of their community and give them an experience that will expand their world in new and exciting ways.
Call 782-2211 to reserve space for your class.
2025-26 Shows
Misery
by William Goldman adapted from the novel by Stephen King
Student Matinee Dates
Call 207-782-2211 to reserve for your class.
Tues, October 28 – 9:30 am
Wed, October 29 – 9:30 am
Wed, November 5 – 9:30 am
Thu, November 6 – 9:30 am
$7 for Students / Chaperones
Oct 24, 25, 26, 30, 31, Nov 1, 2, 6, 7, 8 ,9 – 2025
Thurs & Fri @ 7pm / Sat @ 3pm / Sun @ 2pm, *Sat, 11/1 @ 3pm & 7:30 pm
Youth Tickets (18 and under): $15
Stephen King’s best-selling psychological thriller and Oscar-winning film is now a spine-chilling play. Truth is stranger than fiction when a famous romance novelist veers off the road in a winter storm and wakes up incapacitated in the home of his “number-one fan”. Unexpected events turn his number-one fan into his number-one enemy and a heart-pounding life or death game of cat and mouse ensues.
Rating: PG-13
Recommended for Grades 9-12
A Christmas Carol
adapted by Christopher Schario
Student Matinee Dates
Call 207-782-2211 to reserve for your class.
Tues, December 9 @ 9:30 am
Wed, December 10 @ 9:30 am
Thur, December 11 @ 10:00 am
Fri, December 12 @ 9:30 am
Run Time: 60 minutes, allow additional 15 minutes for optional post-show discussion.
Dec 12, 13, 14, 2025
Fri & Sat @ 7pm / Sat & Sun @ 2pm
Youth Tickets (18 and under) $15
Six actors and a fiddler perform the Dickens out of this beloved holiday story told in a way you’ve never imagined and will never forget! Don’t miss this unique and acclaimed adaptation originally created at The Public Theatre, now published and performed all over the world!
Recommended for students in Grades 3 and up.
Run Time: 60 minutes, allow additional 15 minutes for optional post-show discussion.
Still
by Lia Romeo
Student Matinees: Feb 3 & 4 @ 9:30 am
$7 for Students / Chaperones
Jan 30, 31, Feb 1, 5, 6, 7*, 8 – 2026
Thurs & Fri @ 7pm / Sat @ 3pm / Sun @ 2pm, *Sat, 2/7 @ 3pm & 7:30 pm
Youth Tickets (18 and under): $15
Lost love is rekindled in this funny, heartbreaking, sexy and smart story when a couple who broke up in their 30s reunite in their 60s. But what happens if you love someone but hate the things they believe?
Whit’s End
by Norm Foster
Student Matinees: March 24 & 25 @ 9:30 am
$7 for Students / Chaperones
Mar 20, 21, 22, 26, 27, 28*, 29 – 2026
Thurs & Fri @ 7pm / Sat @ 3pm / Sun @ 2pm, *Sat, 3/28 @ 3pm & 7:30 pm
Youth Tickets (18 and under): $15
From the author of Halfway There and Lunenburg comes the US premiere of a hilarious and heartwarming new comedy about love, family and significant others. Whether you’re a parent or a child, this delightfully funny comedy about the way we expand our hearts to expand our family is for you.
Grandma Gatewood Took a Walk
by Catherine Bush
Student Matinees: May 12 & 13 @ 9:30 am
$7 for Students / Chaperones
May 8, 9, 10, 14, 15, 16*, 17 – 2026
Thurs & Fri @ 7pm / Sat @ 3pm / Sun @ 2pm, *Sat, 5/16 @ 3pm & 7:30 pm
Youth Tickets (18 and under): $15
In 1955 at the age of 67, Emma “Grandma” Gatewood told her children she was “going for a walk.” and set out with her duffel bag, shower curtain (to keep dry) and a pair of Keds sneakers to walk the Appalachian Trail.
Hansel and Gretel
by Tanglewood Marionettes
Student Matinee Dates
Call 207-782-2211 to reserve for your class.
Tuesday, May 26, 2026 at 9:30 AM
Wednesday, May 27, 2026 at 9:30 AM
Thursday, May 28, 2026 at 9:30 AM
Thursday, May 28, 2026 at 11:30 AM
Friday, May 29, 2026 at 9:30 AM
Friday, May 29, 2026 at 11:30 AM
Run Time: 45 minutes, allow additional 10 minutes for optional post-show discussion.
Hansel and Gretel is based on the classic fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm, and features melodies from the Humperdinck opera. The colorful set is in the shape of a giant story book; as the pages turn, each new and exciting scene is revealed. All the staging, scenery, and marionettes are handcrafted by Tanglewood Marionettes and together represent over a year of construction time.
The story itself is set in the mid-nineteenth century. As the tale unfolds, Hansel and Gretel must call upon their inner reserves and learn new methods to overcome the challenges they encounter while lost in the wood.
Rating: G
Recommended grade levels: Appropriate for Grades K – 6; best for Grades 1 – 6
Hansel and Gretel by Tanglewood Marionettes
Get a sneak peek at the show:
Educational Sponsors
The Public Theatre takes pride in recognizing our educational sponsors. We seek to develop a partnership with local businesses working together for the enrichment of the Lewiston-Auburn area. The following businesses have joined us in this partnership. If you would like to see your company listed here, please contact us regarding sponsorship opportunities.
Educational Underwriters
Helen and George Ladd
Charitable Corporation
