Soulpepper announces a new production of Alligator Pie for fall season

Albert Schultz, Founding Artistic Director of Soulpepper Theatre Company

Beckett’s Endgame is directed by Daniel Brooks, and features Diego Matamoros, Eric Peterson, Maria Vacratsis and Joseph Ziegler. This is the first time in Soulpepper’s history that an award-winning production is being re-imagined. Brooks directed Endgame in 1999, earning Soulpepper’s first Dora Award for Best Production. Thirteen years on, Brooks returns with the original production team, and original cast member Matamoros, to re-examine a play counted amongst Beckett’s masterpieces. Endgame begins in previews on October 26, opens on October 31 and runs until November 17.

 

 

Apples are ripening, Halloweens near….

Making art with leaves or something sickly sweet,

Find a cool costume and go trick or treat!

October has only just begun,…

So let’s “fall� out there and have some fun.

 

October is renowned for apple and pumpkin picking. My family and I enjoy apple and pumpkin picking because not only do we get to spend a fun filled day out in the fresh air, we get to come home at the end of it and bake pies, muffins and eat fresh apples galore. Vibrant fall colours makes going on nature walks a lot more interesting and the leaves provide countless arts and craft projects to keep the kids occupied on the chilly winter days. At the end of the month comes Halloween, the holiday of sugar…whether it is the stash of candy that the kids collect while trick or treating or the multitude of sugary Halloween-themed recipes.

 

Below you will find two different leaf projects to do with your kids. Try your hand at solving the anagrams related to the month of October. Attempt to make one of the three kinds of super sweet and sticky apple treats.

 

Leaf rubbings

 

Materials:

• Paper (thinner paper works best!)
• leaves
• wax crayons

 

Instructions:

1. Gather a variety of leaves.
2. Cover a leaf with a piece of paper with the “lumpier� side of the leaf (the back side) facing upwards.
3. Lay a crayon on its side (it works better this way) and gently rub the crayon on the paper over the leaf.  The imprint of the leaf should show on the paper!

 

You can cut out your leaf prints and use them to make a tree or just enjoy them as a picture

 

Paint ‘n’ press leaf collage

.

Materials:

• paper plates (one for each paint colour)
• finger paint
• construction or cardboard paper
• leaves

 

Instructions:

1. Gather a variety of different shaped and sized leaves. 
2. Take the finger paint and pour a splash of each colour onto its own plate.
3. Put a sheet of construction in front of the aspiring artist
4. Dip the each of the leaves into the paints and then press them into the paper one at a time to create a leaf collage.  Let it dry.

 

Autumn Anagrams: Try to figure out these anagrams. The words are related to the month of October. When you are done, try making up your own anagrams.

 

vshraet  brcoteo kmpunsip          evlaes               elwolaehn         

lpsape               alfl                    hewtisc dcyna               stohsg 

 

(solutions for the anagrams can be found at the end of the article)

 

Super Sweet Apples Treats!

Toffee, taffy, candy or caramel apples…either way these super sweet treats are a highlight of the October-Halloween-Fall season.  Kids (and adults) of all ages enjoy them.  Here are 3 recipes that I found on the website http://www.allfreecrafts.com/phprint.php.  They tend to have really good recipes and offer a variety of options, for a variety of chefs!

 

Old-Fashioned Red Candy Apples

Ingredients:

8-10 medium sized apples

8-10 wooden sticks

3 cups white sugar

½ cup light corn syrup

1 cup water

¼ teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

¼ teaspoon red food coloring (optional)

 

Method:

1. Wash and dry the apples. Remove any stems or leaves and insert a wooden stick into the end of each apple. Set apples aside.
2. Heat and stir sugar, corn syrup and water in a saucepan until sugar has dissolved. Boil until the syrup reaches 300 degrees on a candy thermometer, or until a little syrup dropped into cold water separates into breakable threads.
3. Remove from heat and stir in cinnamon and food coloring, if using.
4. Dip one apple completely in the syrup and swirl it around a little with the stick to coat. Hold the apple above the saucepan to drain off excess.
5. Place apple, with the stick facing up, on a well greased pan.
6. Repeat with remaining apples. If syrup thickens or cools too much, simply reheat briefly before proceeding. Let cool completely before serving.

Variations: After coating each apple, quickly dip the end or press and swirl apples in shredded coconut, colored M&M’s, chopped nuts, granola or colored sprinkles.

 

Caramel Apples

Ingredients:

8-10 medium tart apples

8-10 wooden sticks

1 cup butter

2 cups packed brown sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

2 teaspoons vanilla

 

Method:

1. Wash and dry the apples, removing any stems. Insert a wooden stick into the end of each apple.
2. Combine butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and condensed milk in a heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil for 30 to 40 minutes, or until syrup reaches 248 degrees (firm ball stage) on a candy thermometer.
3. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Dip each apple into the caramel mixture, swirling to coat. Set apples on wax paper to cool completely before serving.

 

Quick Microwave Caramel Apples

Ingredients:

6 apples

6 wooden sticks

1 (14 oz) package of wrapped caramel candies

2 tablespoons milk

 

Method:

1. Wash and dry apples and remove stems. Insert a wooden stick into the end of each apple and set aside.
2. Place unwrapped caramel candies and milk in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high for 2 minutes, stirring once.
3. Swirl each apple in caramel mixture, then place on a well greased cookie sheet to cool and set. 

Most importantly…ENJOY!!! 

 

Anagram answers:  Harvest, October, Pumpkins, Leaves,  Halloween, Apples, Fall, Witches, Candy, Ghosts. 

 

Shelley Sefton is a chef, recipe developer & creator of “Yummy in my Tummy� - classes for kids that  offers them the opportunity to  experience exciting adventures in the kitchen – combining education, art,  food and most important of all FUN! Contact: (905) 597-0672 or sdsefton@rogers.com.

©Shelley Sefton 2010

WRITTEN BY
Nathalie Prezeau, author of Toronto Fun Places

Not as psyched about back to school time as the parent in Staples’ hilarious ad? It may be because you’re realizing summer swooshed by once again and you never got to take your kids to one of the big-ticket attractions they begged you to. Well, there’s still some fun to be had after Labour Day. It’s not over till it’s over!

Here’s a list of major attractions normally associated with the summer, which are open beyond Labour Day. You probably won’t save on the regular admission cost but you can expect fewer visitors and cooler weather, all contributing to a more pleasant outing.

Marineland
We prefer to attend Marineland during the fall. There’s lots of walking involved to enjoy the spread of activities, animals and shows throughout the site. The park is virtually shadowless. On days when the sun is blaring, it’s enough to melt most kids’ enthousiasm. On the other hand, when the temperature gets below 20 degrees, young visitors will climb up to the Sky Screamer like young mountain goats. Note that all the regular activities are offered in the fall.
Hours: Open from September 6 to October 11, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (doors close at 5 p.m. but attractions operate until nightfall).
Admission: $40/10 years and over, $33/5-9 years old, FREE for kids 4 years and under (tax not included). Try to grab a promotional brochure of the area available in most attractions in Niagara. They normally include discount coupons.

Canada’s Wonderland
Wonderland’s water park is now closed, which solves the usual dilemma of finding the time to do it all in one day. The other “dry� attractions remain open until the end of the season, weather permitting. Note that the regular admission does not include access to the Halloween Haunt event (held in October and recommended for kids 13 and over).
Hours: Closed on September 12, then, open Saturdays and Sundays until end of October (from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. in September, and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in October). Note that the park has different opening hours for its Halloween Haunt event.
Admission: During the fall weekends, the admission is down to $29.95 (tax not included). This does not include admission to their Halloween Haunt.

Ontario Place
If the weather gets really warm in September, note that the waterpark within Ontario Place will remain open until the end of their season.
Hours: Still open on September 12-13 and 19-20 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (the waterpark opens at 11 a.m.).
Admission: You’ll save up to $3.50 per person by ordering online, which means admission cost is $30/6-64 years old, $16/4-5 years old and 65 and over, FREE for kids 3 years and under, $104/family of four ages 6-64 (tax not included).

Centreville Amusement Park
The strike cheated us of a whole month of fun at the Centreville Amusement Park but we can still enjoy it on the weekends until the end of September.
Hours: Open on September 12-13 and 19-20, from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., and on September 26-27, from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (weather permitting).
Admission: $29.50/over 48 inches, $21/4 years and under, $90/family of four (tax not included). The ferry is $6.50/adult, $3/kids, FREE for 2 years and under.

In her personal yet practical 480-page guidebook, author Nathalie Prezeau describes hundreds of outings in and around the GTA she tested with her family and friends over the past twelve years. The 4th edition is out! It includes a new chapter on things to do with the kids around the 69 subway stations in Toronto, as well as exciting city walks to play the tourist in Toronto. Available in the Travel Section of GTA bookstores as well as Mastermind Educational Toys stores and currently at Costco. Visit www.torontofunplaces.com to learn more.