Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus Engages Young Theatre Audiences
Advanced theatre students are winding up their show tour this week. During the semester, they visited 14 different elementary schools, libraries, and even Kohl’s Children’s Museum. They close their tour on Thursday at Holy Family Catholic Academy in Inverness.
Students recreated the children’s classic Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus as part of their Theatre Outreach class, which was conceived four years ago by Fine Arts Chairperson Ms. Megan Gray.
“Considered our most advanced theatre class, Theatre Outreach provides students the opportunity to help produce, design, and perform in a traveling children's musical that we tour with for free around our community,” Ms. Gray says.
Thank you to SVHS for visiting and performing for our preschool through third grade students! It's always a joy to welcome back our Bulldog alumni and see the amazing things they're doing.#SJSAH #StJamesSchoolAH #SJSBulldogs pic.twitter.com/b8vRPJNAuQ— St. James School_AH (@SJS_Bulldogs) April 22, 2025
Their tour included performances at nearly all of Saint Viator’s feeder schools, including St. James, St. Mary, and St. Raymond’s. However, they also held performances at Saint Viator, the Arlington Heights Memorial Library, and the Kohl Children's Museum, where they have performed every year.
Our Theatre Outreach class loved performing twice at the @kohlchildrensmu this week (as well as exploring the exhibits!)! Catch the bus at 10:30a this morning when we perform at the @ahml (if you can get a seat! Pre-registration required)! 🚏 pic.twitter.com/wEkLNfSEbc— Saint Viator Theatre (@stviatortheatre) April 26, 2025
“Our goal is to introduce the next generation to theatre,” says senior Paul Schultz, “but it’s almost as much fun for us as it is for our audiences.”
Paul and his classmates played the wacky characters on the bus, who try to prevent the persistent pigeon from trying to drive the bus. With each excuse the pigeon comes up with to drive the bus, the bus riders – and the audience – yell, “No!”
“It makes theatre more accessible and brings one of their favorite stories to life,” says senior Lexi Horn. “By bringing theatre to these little kids, we’re hoping to open their minds a little bit about all the creativity that’s possible.”
Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus is the first in a series of Pigeon books written and illustrated by Mo Willems. Published in 2003, it received the distinguished Caldecott Honor, which is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, before going on to win more national awards.
Ms. Gray loves the Theatre for Young Audiences genre, and she regularly attends performances in the area. When she saw a full production of Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus last summer at the Marriott Lincolnshire, she knew her talented theatre students would love it.
“I fell in love with the hilarious script and dazzling puppets,” Ms Gray says. “It's also great when the show is based on a book, so teachers can read it with their students in advance and incorporate it into their lessons.”
Saint Viator High School
Located in Arlington Heights, IL, Saint Viator High School is a private, co-ed, Catholic school for grades 9-12. Students benefit from a challenging academic program, fine and performing arts, competitive athletics, and a wide selection of extracurricular activities.
