I walked into The Village Theatre on Wednesday morning without expectations. Sadly, it had been a long time since I had seen a play at this theatre, or any play at all for that matter.

After receiving my ticket and taking my seat, I looked at the program. The stories listed immediately struck my memory. It had been a long time since I had heard them, but I could remember the details.

I was not sitting long before the crowd of 19, myself included, watched the lights dim and the play begin. The style of the introduction was also reflected in the way the transitions were carried through.

The actors in the play came out wearing the same shirt in different colors. The shirts had their names on the front and ‘Aesop’s Fables’ on the back. The actors began with agreeing to want to hear a story. The director of the company, John T. Oertling, then presents himself as Aesop. Aesop offers characters to the actors to portray for each story. The actors also put on simple costumes on stage, in front of everyone. The scene is created in the same way.

I feel this is an effective way to show the fables to children. The children in the audience are not misled that the actors are indeed the animals, which could potentially scare them.

The children watch the eight actors don their costumes right in front of them. This is also a way for the children to relate to the actors. Its as if the child is at home playing dress up.

The costumes are very simple. Most of them require simply two pieces of attire. This helps the stories move along quickly. It also helps the dress up feel, as the children could feel as though they could act out the stories in their own homes.

The company presents six fables to the crowd. Each fable lasts roughly six minutes long. This is just long enough to tell the story in its completion. It is also a short enough time so as to not lose the often short attention span of the children in the audience. By my guessing, I would have to say that the children in the audience were between the ages of two and five.

The show ran very smoothly. As with the fables being presented, the show was very family-friendly. The actors fit easily into each part. A particular favorite of mine was Justin Finley, who played the tortoise in the story of the ‘Tortoise and the Hare.’ His voice and actions were in matching with the character. It brought me to memories of the cartoon adaptation I have seen at some point growing up.

I would recommend this to anyone who is around children. In fact I would recommend this play to anyone who wants to escape to the past and remember his or her childhood.