Koba Entertainment is a producer of original musical theatre based in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749, ...

, Manitoba, Canada. To date, they have produced numerous Canadian and U.S. tours for such famous children's properties as

Bubble Guppies ''Bubble Guppies'' is a CGI-animated children's television series produced for Nickelodeon and created by Jonny Belt and Robert Scull. The series is a combination of the sketch comedy, edutainment, and musical genres, and revolves around the ...

, Max and Ruby, Toopy & Binoo,

The Backyardigans ''The Backyardigans'' is a computer-animated musical children's television series created by Janice Burgess. The series was written and recorded at Nickelodeon Animation Studio. It centers on five animal neighbors who imagine themselves on fantas ...

The Big Comfy Couch ''The Big Comfy Couch'' (''Le Monde de Loonette'' nglish: ''The World of Loonette'' or ''Loonette's World''when broadcast in Quebec, France and Belgium and ''El sofa da la imaginación'' nglish: ''The Couch of Imagination''when broadcast in La ...

Caillou ''Caillou'' () is a Canadian educational children's television series which aired on Teletoon (both English and French versions), with its first episode airing on the former channel on September 15, 1997; it later moved to Treehouse TV, with i ...

The Doodlebops ''The Doodlebops'' is a Canadian live action musical-comedy children's television series. It was produced by Cookie Jar Entertainment (now WildBrain) for CBC Television in Canada—although the series aired in the U.S., on Disney Channel's Pla ...

, Franklin the Turtle, and Maurice Sendak’s Little Bear.

History and Staff

Koba was founded in 2004, and is part of th
Paquin Entertainment Group
with offices in Winnipeg, Manitoba and

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, Ontario. The Executive Producer i
Gilles Paquin
and artistic director is Patti Caplette.

Productions

The Backyardigans

is a 3-D CGI-animated children's TV series, created by

Janice Burgess Janice Burgess (born 1954) is a former television executive, writer, and producer for Nickelodeon. She created the Nick Jr. series ''The Backyardigans'' and worked as a writer and creative director for Nickelodeon's revival of ''Winx Club''. Bot ...

. It is a co-production of

Nick Jr Nick Jr. (known on-air as the Nick Jr. Channel) is an American pay television channel spun off from Nickelodeon's long-running programming block of the same name. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family ...

. and the Canadian animation studio Nelvana. It can currently be seen on

Treehouse TV Treehouse TV is a Canadian English-language specialty channel for preschoolers aged 2 to 5 that was launched in 1997. Its name comes from YTV's former preschool block, " The Treehouse". The channel is owned by YTV Canada, Inc., a subsidiary of ...

in Canada and Nick Jr. in the US.

Quest for the Extra Ordinary Aliens

The Backyardigans: ''Quest for the Extra Ordinary Aliens'' was the first of two live stage shows produced by Koba Entertainment. It originally toured across Canada in January 2008, and again in early 2009 The Backyardigans: Quest for the Extra Ordinary Aliens was directed and choreographed by Patti Caplette, Artistic Director for KOBA Family Entertainment. An award-winning choreographer, performer and theatrical producer, Patti co-wrote Quest for the Extra Ordinary Aliens with New York-based television writer, Rodney Stringfellow, a contributing writer to the hit TV show. Original tunes from the TV show, composed by musician/composer Evan Lurie (The Lounge Lizards) figure prominently in the stage show.

Sea Deep in Adventure

The Backyardigans: ''Sea Deep in Adventure'' was developed and first toured in 2009. The Director/Choreographer was Patti Caplette, who also co-wrote the show with one of the TV shows' writers Rodney Stringfellow. The shows also feature the original music from the TV show, which was written by Evan Lurie. The show saw Pablo, Tyrone, Tasha, Uniqua and Austin exploring underwater coral reefs, playing in an octopus's garden, and joining a jellyfish ballet.

The Big Comfy Couch

In 2007, a live theatrical production of

entitled Molly's Fool Moon Festival toured in Canada. The show included Loonette the Clown, Molly, Granny Garbanzo, Major Bedhead and others. The production was produced by Koba Entertainment, and presented by Paquin Entertainment Group.

Doodlebops

is a Canadian television show for children. Beginning its TV broadcasting run in 2004, the series, produced by Cookie Jar Entertainment airs on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) in Canada in the CBC Kids morning program schedule, on the Disney Channel in the USA as part of the Playhouse Disney Morning programming schedule and on Playhouse Disney (UK) in the UK.

Together Forever

A live theatrical show entitled The Doodlebops: Together Forever Tour has been developed and toured Canada in early 2009. The show includes musical performances of signature favorites as well as new songs. The live version incorporates giant screens and original sets and costumes. The show was produced by Koba Entertainment, and presented by Paquin Entertainment.

Franklin the Turtle

Franklin the Turtle is a Canadian/American children's television series, based on a series of books by

Brenda Clark Brenda Clark (born February 10, 1955) is a Canadian illustrator, perhaps best known for her work on the Franklin the Turtle series of children's books. She was born in Toronto and studied illustration at Sheridan College. She now lives in Port H ...

(illustrator) and

Paulette Bourgeois Paulette Bourgeois, (born July 20, 1951) is a Canadian writer best known for creating Franklin the Turtle, the character who appears in picture books illustrated by Toronto native Brenda Clark. The books have sold more than 60 million copies wo ...

(writer). The television series was named after its main character, Franklin the Turtle. In the Canadian French version, the cartoon shorts are presented with the title character of Benjamin and a similar theme song.

Franklin’s Family Christmas Concert

Franklin's Family Christmas Concert originally toured Canada in 2006, and again in 2008. This live musical production featured Franklin, Fox, Bear, Beaver and others as they throw a Christmas party celebrating the season. The show was produced by Koba Entertainment, and was presented by Paquin Entertainment.

Franklin & The Noble Knights

Franklin & the Noble Knights was developed and toured Europe in 2009. It will be touring in Canada in early 2010. The show sees Franklin on a quest to recover sister Harriet’s stolen golden necklace. He is joined by his friends Bear, Snail, Beaver, Fox, and Rabbit. The show was produced by Koba Entertainment and presented by Paquin Entertainment.

Franklin’s Carnival of Animals

Franklin's Carnival of Animals was a live production featuring Franklin and his friends as they are taken on an outing to visit a Symphony Orchestra. The show featured a chamber orchestra, playing such pieces as ''

The Teddy Bears' Picnic "The Teddy Bears' Picnic" is a song consisting of a melody by American composer John Walter Bratton, written in 1907, and lyrics added by Irish songwriter Jimmy Kennedy in 1932. It remains popular as a children's song, having been recorded by nu ...

'', '' The Flight of the Bumblebee'' and the Comedians' Galop. The show was produced by Koba Entertainment and presented by Paquin Entertainment.

Little Bear

Little Bear is a children's television series. Originally produced by Nelvana for

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. It ...

, it currently airs on

in Canada and Nick Jr. in the United States. It is based on the Little Bear series of books which were written by Else Holmelund Minarik, and illustrated by Maurice Sendak.

Little Bear: Winter Tails

Little Bear: Winter Tails is a live theatrical production, starring Little Bear and his friends as they explore the magical merriment of the Winter Season. All of his friends join him on stage, including Emily, Duck, Cat, Owl and Hen. The show first toured in 2007, and returns in the winter of 2009. The show is produced by Koba Entertainment, and presented by Paquin Entertainment.

Future

The company continues to create new live theatrical shows for children.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official Website
Culture of Winnipeg