Grand Pistachio will present "Layer the Walls: Midcentury" on Saturday, Jan. 25, at 1 p.m. at the Winter Visual and Performing Arts Center, 60 W. Cottage Ave., Millersville.

"Layer the Walls" is a live theater piece for young audiences focusing on immigration and universal struggles surrounding discrimination. While visiting the Tenement Museum in New York City, the play's creators learned that 40 layers of wallpaper were found on the walls of an old apartment. Each piece had been applied by a new immigrant family attempting to make the space its own, with every layer filled with hopes, dreams, and stories of survival. As layers of the set are peeled away, the characters' stories of immigration are revealed.

"Layer the Walls: Mid-Century" spans 1930 to 1970, including stories of a Chinese father who enters the U.S. and endures 30 years of separation from his family, a young Holocaust survivor who has to adapt to life in New York City, and Puerto Rican sisters who join the Young Lords' fight for health care equity. These stories are brought to life with rod puppetry, ribbon dancing, masks, Bunraku-style puppetry, shadow puppetry, and original music.

Grand Pistachio creates original theater for young people utilizing puppetry, masks, and music. Its mission is to engage audience empathy and open new ways for young people to view each other, the world, and their role in it. The organization seeks to achieve these aims by highlighting the stories of people who might not be in the history books or cultural records.

The event will include free preshow children's activities as part of the season's Family Fun Fest series. Community organizations and Millersville University student groups will host tables offering children's crafts and activities that are inspired by the performance. Children will leave with goodie bags filled with their creations.

This performance will feature ASL interpretation, audio description, and sensory-friendly accommodations.

To purchase tickets, visit http://www.artsmu.com, call 717-871-7600, or stop by the Ware Center, 42 N. Prince St., Lancaster, or the Student Memorial Center box office on the Millersville University campus.