FORT LAUDERDALE – Students can enjoy the thrills of invention, exploration, storytelling and friendship in four captivating JM Family Enterprises Smart Stage Matinees offered at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts and Parker Playhouse this November.

The Wright Brothers - Those Daring Young Men & Their Flying Machine is a musical that will send students’ imagination soaring Monday, November 5 at 10 a.m. Two brothers, Orville and Wilbur Wright, decide that it is their destiny to make their dream real and begin in earnest to build a machine that can fly. After some success, but a lot more failure, they toss a coin to decide who will be the first human to experience sustained powered flight. Students are a witness to the historic flight in this performance which is recommended for grades 3–6.

Charlotte's Web, based on E. B. White's heartwarming children's book, will delight students Wednesday, November 7 at 10 a.m. A pig named Wilbur has a major problem, so he turns to a little barn spider and a true friend named Charlotte, who assures him that she will save him. This treasured tale recommended for grades 3–5, features mad-cap and endearing farm animals as it explores bravery, selfless love and the true meaning of friendship.

Adapted from the classic novel by Daniel Defoe, Robinson Crusoe & Friday is an imaginative retelling emphasizing communication and embracing cultural differences and empathy on Tuesday, November 13 at 10 a.m. An English sailor shipwrecked on a remote island works against all odds to survive alone for 25 years until one day when he rescues a stranger and the two develop a remarkable friendship. This adventure full of comedic miscommunication, history, and heart is recommended for grades 3–6.

Charlotte Blake Alston: Stories and Songs in the Oral Tradition on Wednesday, November 14 at 10 a.m. features Alston as she selects from her wide repertoire of stories and songs from the African and African American oral traditions. For hundreds of years throughout the African continent, people gathered and told stories that were the way beliefs, mythology, cultural identity, history, and shared community values were taught. The tradition continued when Africans were brought to America. The show in which children are encouraged to clap, sing and help tell stories is recommended for grades 3–6.

All shows are in the Amaturo Theater at the Broward Center except for Charlotte’s Web which is performed at Parker Playhouse.

JM Family Enterprises Smart Stage Matinees offer literature-based shows that promote reading skills and S.T.E.A.M. (Science Technology Engineering Arts Math) to make challenging concepts accessible to younger learners.

Tickets to each production are $7.20 and $3 lap seats for infants 12 months and under. Ticketmaster is the only official ticketing service of the Broward Center, Parker Playhouse and affiliated venues. Buy tickets online at BrowardCenter.org or Ticketmaster.com; by phone at 954.462.0222 or the Broward Center’s AutoNation Box Office. Know who you are buying from when you purchase tickets.

Groups of 10 may also purchase Smart Stage Plus workshops for performances at the Broward Center.

Held at 11:20 a.m., these 40-minute workshops connect direct experience with learning building on the themes and educational content from the performance students have just attended. Workshop tickets are an additional $5 per student and are available through group sales at 954.660.6307.

The Broward Center for the Performing Arts is located in the Riverwalk Arts & Entertainment District at 201 SW Fifth Avenue in Fort Lauderdale. The Parker Playhouse, located in Holiday Park at 707 N.E. Eighth Street in Fort Lauderdale is an affiliated venue of the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, which provides programming and management of the facility.