Colorado Symphony presents ‘Peter Rabbit’ in Spanish and English in Beaver Creek April 2

Petite Musique, the Colorado Symphony’s bilingual, interactive concert program, comes to Vilar Performing Arts Center April 2.  

The annual program, which features a different children’s story each year, showcases a 16-piece orchestra and bilingual narrator Lauren Dennis, who blends storytelling in both English and Spanish with song and dance. This year’s program follows the adventures of “Peter Rabbit.” 

Designed for pre-kindergartners to second-graders, the 45-minute program includes a free storybook (in English and Spanish) for kids to follow along. 

“There are a lot of different components, based on the literacy initiative, such as tracing letters and matching (images),” said Breanna McCaughey, director of community education of the Colorado Symphony Association. “(Dennis) engages the kids and does different voices and encourages kids and families to dance around. They love Lauren … and kids think it’s cool to see all the instruments — the brass, strings, percussion and wind instruments.” 

“At the Colorado Symphony, we are happy to offer this opportunity as part of our commitment to make symphonic music to all,” Dennis said, adding that providing bilingual programming “that brings the concert experience to life” is also a high priority. “’Petite Musique’ is an interactive concert program designed to introduce very young children to the instruments of the orchestra through a musical telling of a children’s story.” 

Support Local Journalism

Donate

As kids sing, dance and read along, they become immersed in the musical experience, especially as they follow Peter Rabbit as he gets into all kinds of garden mischief. 

The concert ends with singing “Baby Shark,” which McCaughey said is “always a hit,” as kids dance and sing. 

Through the concert, the performers hope to inspire kids. 

“Just like anyone can be a cook, anyone can be a musician. It’s important to learn and express yourself through instruments,” McCaughey said, adding that when the music is paired with a story, “it comes to life. It’s a really unique program because of the storybooks in English and Spanish. It’s great for Spanish immersion or for (those) learning English — it brings the community together.”