Spare Times - For Children, for May 4-10 It all starts with an apple. That fruit has a history of causing trouble: Just remember Genesis. But in the little Eden now at the New 42nd Street Studios - home not to Adam and Eve, but to Roger and Roberta, fluffy rabbits - apples don't signal an end to innocence but rather a joyful celebration of it. That tribute is "Plop!," the New Victory Theater's latest offering for discriminating audiences 2 to 5. Yes, discriminating: They don't listen politely when not thoroughly entertained. Fortunately this 35-minute show offers surprise after surprise, eliciting giggles from grown-ups too. Presented by Windmill Theater of Adelaide, Australia, "Plop!" takes its premise from "The Terrible Plop" (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2009). In that picture book by Ursula Dubosarsky, illustrated by Andrew Joyner, an apple falls from a tree into a lake, making a "terrible plop" that sends picnicking rabbits running and other species following. But in the play the action stays lakeside, exploring the myriad magical possibilities of falling apples. Thank you, Isaac Newton. Here the lake is a waist-high cylindrical tub, and the tree a Rube Goldberg-type contraption overhead, with transparent tubes that funnel down a series of apples, pinball style. Geoff Cobham designed the set. A not-very-scary bear, played by Tyson Hopprich, a k a DJ Trip, sits at a table, operating the apple dispenser and synthesizing sound effects; he's one hip beast. When the first apple plops, it scares away Roger and Roberta, puppets operated by Nathan O'Keefe and Nadia Rossi. So Mr. O'Keefe and Ms. Rossi resolve to "stop the terrible plop" - the script, like the book, is in Seussian-flavored rhyme - by catching falling apples with a hand, a basket, a racket, etc. These actions lead to others, like juggling, volleying, even concocting a recipe, above. Sometimes the apples aren't apples: one that appears to be plastic becomes a sailboat, and another emerges as a glittering silver globe. This leads DJ Trip to crank up the music, and soon all the children are on their feet, shaking their little booties to electronica. "Plop!," directed by Sam Haren, makes a splash - sometimes literally - without any attempt at preschool pedagogy. Mr. O'Keefe and Ms. Rossi count aloud once, but they're not really teaching. This show has only one lesson: All you need is an apple, and you can have a ball. (Through May 13 in Studio 3A/B, 229 West 42nd Street, Manhattan, 646-223-3010, newvictory.org. Daily except Monday, with tickets limited for some shows; full schedule on the Web site; $20; $14 for members.) For Children Animal Tales Extravaganza (Saturday and Sunday) "Avenue Q" may not be appropriate for small children, but "Avenue Zoo" certainly is - and it has one of the same stars. Kate Monster, an "Avenue Q" puppet, has a leading role in "Avenue Zoo," part of the annual Animal Tales Extravaganza at the Bronx Zoo. In shows at 12:30 and 2:30 p.m., Kate meets exotic animals. Other highlights of the extravaganza will be attending a rain forest animal parade; making crafts; reading from wildlife-theme books; and seeing a second stage production, "Nickelodeon's Dora and Diego: We Did It!," at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 and 3:30 p.m. Through June 30. From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Bronx River Parkway and Fordham Road, Fordham, (718) 367-1010, bronxzoo.com. Free with admission: $16; $14 for 65+; 12 for ages 3 through 12; free for members and under 3. Parking, $13. Arts From Muslim Lands Festival (Saturday and Sunday) Many American children are exposed to only negative images of Islam. This annual celebration at the Children's Museum of Manhattan honors the rich cultural heritage of the Muslim world. The festivities will include making collages for mosaic horseshoe arches (for ages 4 and younger); learning Arabic calligraphy (Saturday only, for ages 5 and older); and creating mosaic art from colorful tiles (Sunday only, for ages 5 and older). On Saturday the duo Gaida & Tareq will present Middle Eastern songs, and on Sunday the Saung Budaya Indonesian Dance Group will perform the Saman dance (also called Dance of the Thousand Hands) and teach it too. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (schedule is on the Web site), Tisch Building, 212 West 83rd Street, (212) 721-1223, cmom.org. Free with museum admission: $11; $7 for 65+; free for members and under 1. Space is limited; tickets for events will be distributed at the information desk one hour in advance. Big Movies for Little Kids: "Barbapapa" (Monday) This series introduces children 2 to 7 (though all ages are welcome) to classic films. This bill of shorts introduces the European cartoon character Barbapapa, who looks like a friendly blob and whose ability to change shape is his signature trait. The program is in the original French, but the humor requires no translation. At 4 p.m., Cobble Hill Cinemas, 265 Court Street, at Butler Street, Brooklyn, (718) 596-9113; bigmoviesforlittlekids.blogspot.com; cobblehilltheatre.com; $7; free for those too young to walk. Happy Birthday, Fantasia! (Saturday) Fantasia is a beautiful blonde - all 200-plus pounds of her. And don't expect her to slim down for this occasion; albino Burmese pythons don't watch their weight. Children at her celebration (she's turning 18) at the Brooklyn Children's Museum can learn all about her and watch her have lunch. At 1 p.m., 145 Brooklyn Avenue, at St. Marks Avenue, Crown Heights, (718) 735-4400, brooklynkids.org. Free with admission: $7.50; free for members and under 1. "Hatched: Life on the Farm" (Friday and Thursday) Field trips sometimes take city children to farms, but this piece will take the farm to the children. Written by Mara McEwin and presented by the troupe Treehouse Shakers, this interactive production for the youngest theatergoers - infants to 6-year-olds - uses dance, storytelling and handmade puppets to recreate the experience of a chick breaking out of its shell and encountering other animals. Through May 19. At 11 a.m., Ailey Citigroup Theater, 405 West 55th Street, Clinton, (212) 715-1914, treehouseshakers.com; $20. The Imagination Movers (Saturday) The Imagination Movers are moving more than imaginations. Four guys from New Orleans who draw on their love for rock - and on the experiences three of them have as fathers - they'll get young fans bopping and bouncing. They have their own TV show on Disney Junior, and here they'll perform songs from their new CD/DVD, "Rock-O-Matic." At 1:30 and 4:30 p.m., Best Buy Theater, 1515 Broadway, at 44th Street, (212) 930-1950, imaginationmovers.com; $29.50 to $49.50. New Museum First Saturday for Families: "All About Paper" (Saturday) Paper may be a mundane material, but what's created with it is often exciting: drawings, designs, sculptures, letters, journals, books. In this program, developed with the artist Nicolás Paris, children ages 4 to 15 are invited to explore the versatility and the limits of paper by seeing how many different things can be created with a single sheet before it begins to break down. From 10 a.m. to noon, 235 Bowery, at Prince Street, Lower East Side, (212) 219-1222, newmuseum.org; free. New York Children's Theater Festival (Friday and Saturday) This final weekend of the festival offers "The Velveteen Rabbit," an adaptation of Margery Williams's classic book about the bond between a boy and his favorite stuffed animal, which finally becomes real through the transformative power of love. Friday at 5:30 p.m.; Saturday at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.; Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater, 10 West 64th Street, Manhattan, (866) 811-4111, newyorkchildrenstheaterfestival.org/tickets.html; $18; $15 for Y.M.C.A. members. "8cho Aerial Tango" (Friday through Sunday) Skillful dancers can appear to be gliding through the air; in "8cho" (pronounced OH-cho), the members of the Brenda Angiel Aerial Dance Company really are. This Argentine troupe performs suspended some 20 feet above the stage, executing tango, milonga and waltz moves on the walls, upside down and in open space. Through May 20. Fridays at 7 p.m.; Saturdays at 2 and 7 p.m.; Sundays at noon and 5 p.m.; New Victory Theater, 209 West 42nd Street, Manhattan, (646) 223-3010, newvictory.org; $14 to $38; $9 to $25 for members. "Once Upon a Story: Johnny Appleseed and Other American Tall Tales" (Friday, Saturday, Tuesday and Wednesday) The United States doesn't have just one storytelling tradition, but many. The Shadow Box Theater will celebrate several of them in this shadow-puppet musical, which includes the tales of Johnny Appleseed; Big Annie, a Creole flatboat captain; and "The Growing Rock," American Indian lore. Saturday show at 11 a.m.; all others at 10:30 a.m.; Public School 3, the Bedford Village School, 50 Jefferson Avenue, between Bedford and Franklin Avenues, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn (entrance at the back of the school, on Hancock Street); (212) 724-0677, shadowboxtheatre.org; $10 in advance; $15 at the door; $7.50 for groups. "Seussical" (Friday through Sunday) The Cat in the Hat, Horton the elephant and the tiny Whos all appear in this musical adaptation of Dr. Seuss's books by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty. In this one-hour version (the full-length original ran on Broadway), they will be joined by a cast of young people from Amas Musical Theater. Fridays at 7:30 p.m.; Saturdays at 3 and 7:30 p.m.; Sundays at 3 p.m.; 14th Street Y LABA Theater, 344 East 14th Street, East Village, (212) 352-3101, amasmusical.org; $20; $16 for 65+ and students. Special Music School Play-a-Thon (Saturday) Some of the soloists playing classical music in Manhattan this weekend will be very young. The Special Music School at the Kaufman Center, a public school for musically gifted children, will be holding its annual play-a-thon at the Barnes & Noble in Union Square. Students from kindergarten through eighth grade will play, and visitors can obtain vouchers so that a percentage of the proceeds from their purchases go to the school. From 10 a.m. to 7:15 p.m., Barnes & Noble, Union Square at 17th Street, (212) 501-3390, smsplayathon.com; free. "Timbalooloo With Oran Etkin" (Sunday) Timba what? Timbalooloo is a method of teaching music fundamentals to children, developed by the clarinetist Oran Etkin. Incorporating games, stories and rhythms from many cultures, it will be on display at this concert, at the Jewish Museum, where Mr. Etkin will demonstrate musical connections between Africa and Israel and offer pieces from his 2010 children's album, "Wake Up, Clarinet!" Certainly no listeners will nod off. At 2 p.m., 1109 Fifth Avenue, at 92nd Street, (212) 423-3337, thejewishmuseum.org; $16; $11 for children; $13 and $9 for those with family-level memberships. "What if ... and Other Lives of Spring Blossoming" (Saturday) Nature and the imagination meet in many poems, and children will be invited to explore that connection in this workshop led by the poet Richard Lewis. The Touchstone Center Theater Ensemble will first dramatize the seasonal poem by Mr. Lewis that gives the program its title. Then young participants will use writing and art to envision themselves becoming the sun and the moon, a blooming flower and the spring rain. At 11 a.m., Poets House, 10 River Terrace, Battery Park City, Lower Manhattan, (212) 431-7920, poetshouse.org; free.