HIT Entertainment Digital Newsroom

HIT Entertainment Signs On New Partners to Bring Barney™, Angelina Ballerina™ and Thomas The Tank Engine™ Touring Stage Shows to Children and Families Across North America Starting in Fall 2010

02/18/2010

New York, NY

HIT Entertainment, a leading provider of quality children's entertainment, has reached agreements with several leading producers of live stage musicals to develop, produce and tour new shows for HIT's premier brands, including Barney™, Angelina Ballerina™ and Thomas & Friends™. All three shows are set to commence in the US in fall 2010 and will tour nationwide through 2011.

• VEE Corporation, the live entertainment company that stages world class touring productions such as Sesame Street Live, Curious George Live and many other children's properties over its 30-year history, has signed on to be the exclusive producer of Barney Live, writing, producing and managing an all-new touring stage show for the loveable purple dino in North America and the Caribbean, including Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. The music-filled show will feature Barney, BJ, Baby Bop, Riff and an array of other characters, and will reach families with children 2 to 5 years old.
• Vital Theatre Company, an award-winning theatre company specializing in family productions, will bring Angelina Ballerina and her friends to life in a new original musical stage show. Angelina Ballerina The Musical will debut at the Vital Theatre in New York City on October 2, 2010 for a limited engagement and will travel around the United States and Canada in 2011. Based on the CG-animated series, Angelina Ballerina The Next Steps, this new live stage show will incorporate core themes of dance, music, performance and friendship. Celebrating various styles of dance including ballet and hip hop, and geared towards children ages 3-7 and their families, the musical will include original song and dance numbers.
• AEG/ThemeSTAR, the world-renowned producer and presenter of family entertainment, will bring Thomas & Friends Live On Stage to kids in the US in fall 2010. Following on the heels of its second successful worldwide tour, Thomas will return to US theatres with Thomas Saves The Day, featuring favorite engine friends, fun songs, positive lessons and exciting adventures for a new generation of aspiring engineers and their families.

"One of the most powerful and memorable experiences a young child can have, is to see his or her favorite character sing, dance and perform live, right in front of them," said Gary Krakower, Senior Vice President, Consumer Products and Live Events, HIT Entertainment US. "We are thrilled to be working with such experienced, high quality partners to bring HIT's beloved characters to the stage for a variety of different audiences."

Vincent E. Egan, President and CEO of VEE Corporation said, "We are honored to be entrusted with Barney as we bring him back to the live professional stage in a fresh, new show that will delight and deliver the wholesome values Barney represents. We're looking forward to a very successful venture with HIT Entertainment."

"For over 10 years Vital Theatre Company has been bringing children's stories to life on stage," said Stephen Sunderlin, Artistic Director, Vital Theatre Company. "We are thrilled that this partnership with HIT Entertainment will provide an opportunity for Angelina Ballerina to sing, act and dance her way into the hearts of children and families here in New York City and across North America."

"Since 2007, AEG ThemeSTAR has produced tours of Thomas & Friends Live On Stage that have performed to over 1,000,000 people worldwide in 10 countries and over 200 cities," said Randy Bloom, EVP, AEG/ThemeSTAR. "AEG ThemeSTAR is proud of its association with HIT Entertainment and its role in helping to bring the magic of the Island of Sodor to life for families around the globe."

Schedules and ticket information for all of these shows will be available via the new HIT Entertainment Live Events portal at http://events.hitentertainment.com.

About VEE Corporation
VEE Corporation is one of the most experienced and respected names in family entertainment. VEE has delighted millions of families around the world with live touring stage productions based on some of the world's most beloved children's characters such as Sesame Street, Dragon Tales, Bear in the Big Blue House, The Muppets, Muppet Babies, Care Bears, My Little Pony, and -- new in VEE's 2009-10 touring roster -- Curious George, in cooperation with Universal Pictures Stage Productions. In addition to its 30-year legacy of world class stage tours, VEE Production Services and Costumes & Creatures provide entertainment, promotion and event marketing services for leading brands, properties and services throughout the country. Clients in the sports, museum, corporate, advertising and event marketing sectors turn to VEE for imaginative solutions capturing the undivided attention of their customers and audiences through custom environments, exhibits, events, mascots and brand ambassadors. Founded by Vincent E. Egan in 1980, VEE is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. For more information, visit www.vee.com

About VITAL THEATRE Company
VITAL THEATRE COMPANY is a community of artists who believe that a shared theatrical experience profoundly affects people's lives. Since its founding in 1999, the company has commissioned and developed over 50 original musicals for children. Productions include Pinkalicous, The Musical, currently in its 4th year at Off-Broadway's 45 Bleecker Street Theatre, a production in Toronto, Canada and 2010/2011 National Tours scheduled for both the US and Canada, The Klezmer Nutcracker, The Bully and the current hit Uncle Pirate running in its home theatre at 76th Street and Broadway in New York City. The company has been honored with two AWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE by the Off Off Broadway Review and has received high acclaim from audiences and critics alike for being "a wonderful place for parents to introduce their kids to the glories of live theatre." For more information, visit www.vitaltheatre.org.

About AEG/THEMESTAR
AEG ThemeSTAR is a world-renowned producer and presenter of family entertainment, touring productions in ten languages in over 40 countries. The company produces and tours theatrical and arena productions, entertainment attractions, shows and exhibitions for the global marketplace.

About HIT Entertainment
HIT Entertainment is one of the world's leading independent children's entertainment producers and rights-owners. HIT's portfolio includes properties, such as Barney™, Bob the Builder™, Thomas & Friends™, Pingu™, Fireman Sam™, Angelina Ballerina™ and Rainbow Magic™. HIT represents Chapman Entertainment's Fifi and the Flowertots™ and Roary the Racing Car™ in North America, as well as Wallace & Gromit™, Shaun the Sheep™, Timmy Time™ and Aardman Classics from Aardman Animations. HIT also acts as a worldwide representative for The Jim Henson Company's library of classic family brands and as representative for The Wiggles® in the UK. Launched in 1989, HIT's lines of business span television and video production, content distribution, publishing, consumer products licensing and live events and has operations in the UK, US, Canada, Hong Kong and Japan. HIT is a part-owner of US-based preschool channel, PBS KIDS Sprout℠, and international preschool channel JimJam, (outside of the US, UK and China). For more information, visit www.hitentertainment.com.

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