Madeline: Volume 1 - Madeline at the Ballet / Madeline in New York (DVD) NEW

"Madeline at the Ballet": In "Madeline at the Ballet," ballet master Valmont recruits the little French girls to perform with prima ballerina Tatiana in a production of The Happy Swan--except for poor Madeline, who is airily dismissed by him as "too small." (It doesn't help that she isn't as graceful as the other girls.) Madeline is devastated. Fortunately, an influential friend convinces Valmont to give her another chance. The rehearsals don't go off without a hitch, but with patience and persistence--and a little encouragement--Madeline triumphs in the end. Throughout, Miss Clavel's support for her littlest charge never falters. The rambunctious Pepito, however, teases all of the girls for hopping about like "frogs." He changes his tune when Valmont taps him to be in the show. He quickly discovers that ballet isn't as easy as it looks. Actor Christopher Plummer narrates the 25-minute program in author Ludwig Bemelmans's trademark rhyming couplets."Madeline in New York": Velvet-voiced Christopher Plummer ( The Sound of Music) narrates this whimsical account of Madeline's first trip to New York. After Madeline, her schoolmates, pal Pepito, and chaperone Miss Clavel have seen the sites, including the Empire State Building, they take in a baseball game. The adventure really begins when Madeline catches the first home run ball of the season and wins a bridge--the Brooklyn Bridge--from Mr. Moneybags. Owning and operating a major metropolitan bridge turns out to be a formidable task--even for a plucky girl like Madeline. Fortunately, the city's kindly mayor comes to her aid. Along the way, she serves as the bat girl for the Yankees, introduces French fries to America, gets to enjoy her own ticker-tape parade, and even has a street--Madison Avenue--named after her. She will experience further New York adventures in "Madeline's Halloween Spooktacular." --Kathleen C. Fennessy

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