SYLVANIA—Classic children’s literature, Shakespearean plays and historical events will come to life on the stage of the Franciscan Theatre and Conference Center in the 24th season of Theater Vision, opening Oct. 8.

Sponsored by Lourdes College, the Theater Vision Educational Series features professional touring productions geared toward students in preschool through college.

A scene from “The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley,” which INTRAMUSIC Theatricals performs Oct. 15 and 16 at the Franciscan Theater and Conference Center. (Photo courtesy of INTRAMUSIC Theatricals)

“We are finding and presenting, really, what I would consider to be the best in children’s theater,” says Jule Horn, director of Theater Vision.

The weekday performances are open to the public, but are particularly designed to appeal to school groups and home schooling families. Educators receive free teaching materials with ideas for activities they can incorporate into their classes before and after the performance.

Ms. Horn notes Lourdes College also keeps the ticket prices as low as possible by partially subsidizing the performances.

“For some of the children, this is the only opportunity they have to see live theater,” she says. “A lot of the parents don’t provide that kind of opportunity, or they can’t afford to do that, so we try to keep this affordable for all school children.”

Seeing the books they love performed live is exciting for the youngest children. Ms. Horn describes one of her favorite shows, an adaptation of “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” by Eric Carle.

“That’s done in black light, and so it makes it look onstage just like the book on the page,” she says. “It’s very slow-moving, but … it’s mesmerizing, and children just see the show, and they hear the music and you can hear a pin drop.”

“The Very Hungry Caterpillar” is not on the schedule this season, but the same company will perform “Goodnight Moon & The Runaway Bunny” in February. A post-performance demonstration will give young audience members a chance to meet the puppeteers and ask questions.

Another popular show coming in March, is “CSI: Live!” which Ms. Horn describes as an adaptation for children of the popular television drama about crime scene investigations.

Lourdes College also hosts “Theater Vision Days” that include special activities to enhance the understanding of a performance by relating it to science, social studies and other subjects.

One Theater Vision Day in November begins with the performance of “My Heart in a Suitcase,” which tells the story of a young girl who flees Nazi Germany. After the show, students learn more about the era of the Holocaust by asking questions and interacting with an actress who portrays a friend of the young girl.

To connect performances to the science curriculum, Theater Vision partners with the Lourdes Life Lab. After seeing “Leo Lionni’s: Swimmy, Frederick, Inch by Inch” Oct. 8, children can spend the afternoon in the Life Lab learning about fish, inchworms and other creatures featured in the show. 

In March, older students will participate in workshops with actors from the National Players following their performance of “As You Like It.”

More than 20,000 students, teachers and parents attended productions presented by Theater Vision last season.

Many parents attend with their children, and “that’s a wonderful thing,” says Ms. Horn. “We believe if the parents see what the children are seeing, you open up a different way of communicating with your child.”

Even though it is described as educational children’s theater, Ms. Horn considers many of the offerings to be appropriate for adult audiences.

“It’s theater, and it’s learning, and it’s just magical,” she says. “I’ve seen parents go out of here in tears at some of the more moving shows that we have.”

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A complete schedule for the 2008-2009 season of Theater Vision is available at www.franciscancenter.org.