Peppa Pig ready for adventure at Bob Hope Theatre
This little piggy is a star — and she’s making a stop to take her local fans on a fun adventure at Bob Hope Theatre.
That’s right, Peppa Pig is coming to Stockton for “Peppa Pig’s Adventure!” The live show follows the intrepid young pig as she goes camping with Daddy Pig, brother George and school friends Pedro Pony, Suzy Sheep and Gerald Giraffe.
But will rain ruin their good time ... or leave lots of muddy puddles to jump in?
Playing Peppa in the live show is Emily Killian, a Tennessee native with local ties. Between earning a bachelor’s degree in theatrical arts from Rollins College and building an acting career in Los Angeles, Killian spent a year in residency at the B Street Theatre in Sacramento.
Performing in the U.S. tour of Peppa Pig Live! has given her the chance to channel her inner Peppa.
“Playing Peppa — and at its heart all theatre — is about play,” she said. “I’m lucky enough to get to do this show six to seven times a week, so at any given moment I am primed and ready to dive into my imagination. That’s where Peppa lives, so once I turn on my imagination, it’s like she’s there waiting for me to bring her to life. ”
A side benefit of playing Peppa around the country is getting to see things Los Angeles rarely has — like rain, and the mud puddles that come along with it.
Killian, who has also worked as a theatre teacher, sees similarities between teaching and acting.
“I came to teaching as an actor and I used to say that being a classroom teacher is basically writing, directing, producing, and starring in a one-person show seven times a
day,” she said. “You have to understand your audience and your material so well that you can create an experience in which students are excited to engage their minds, and often their bodies and voices too.”
She’s also “a bit of an expert” in making silly faces and voices, she said.
“In college I was sometimes called ‘Rubber Face’ because since I was a kid, I would train my facial muscles to move in every way I could,” she said. “Anything for a laugh!”
She’s always been a bit of a ham, she joked.
Perhaps that’s why, after Peppa, her favorite character is Daddy Pig.
“He’s a big, fluffy Santa Claus of a pig who tries his best at everything!” she said.
Anyone coming to see “Peppa Pig’s Adventure” will be treated to a fun, silly story with new friends, plenty of jokes, and puppetry Killian calls “magical.”
Characters deal with the nerves that come with the first day of school and making new friends, finding the wonders in nature and teamwork.
“Families coming to the show can expect a goshdarn hoot and a half !” Killian said. “It really is so much fun; my fellow cast mates and I end every day marveling to ourselves that we get to be a part of this amazing phenomenon.”