Maya and Miguel @ PBS Kids.

Irrepressible twins, Maya and Miguel Santos, their loving family and their bilingual pet parrot Paco, will unveil their vibrant and uproariously funny world starting October 11, 2004 on PBS KIDS GO!, a new educational multimedia destination created by, for and about early elementary school kids (check local listings). Always unpredictable and ever dauntless, Maya and Miguel’s daily escapades will keep kids laughing from the bottom of their hearts. The twins’ adventures will be chronicled throughout 65 half-hour animated episodes on PBS KIDS GO!

The series is based on an original concept by Scholastic Entertainment President Deborah Forte and is designed to present culture and language learning as fun, relevant, and rewarding for all children, with a special emphasis on the Latino population. The series is part of a broad-based Scholastic initiative comprised of: television; print media; school and community outreach; dynamic Websites at http://www.pbskidsgo.org/mayaandmiguel and scholastic.com; publishing and a host of ancillary materials. The goals of the series are: (1) to promote the value of a culturally diverse society; and (2) to support English language acquisition and usage in personal, social and cultural interactions.

Lively and colorful, the series chronicles the adventures of 10-year-old twins Maya and Miguel Santos and features their family, friends and a richly diverse neighborhood. This never-a-dull-moment situation comedy revolves around Maya’s well-intended meddling in her family’s and friends’ lives. While every episode will take humorous twists and turns, the twins’ motivation comes from the philosophy that shared happiness is more important than personal gain. Sprinkled throughout this hilarious series are values of friendship, family and a positive, culturally rich portrayal of Latino family, language and cultures.

“The next generation of children will grow up as part of the most diverse population this country has ever known. As a result, cultural diversity and cross-cultural understanding have pressing relevance, and my goal is to create a funny, heartwarming series with stories and characters that appeal to all children, but which also reflects the values and cultural mosaic that so many of our country’s neighborhoods have become,” said Deborah Forte, the series’ Executive Producer.

A star-studded cast of actors lend their talents to the voices for the series, including Candi Milo (Chalk Zone, Jimmy Neutron) as the spirited and ever-industrious Maya and Nika Futterman (PBS KIDS’ Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks) as Maya’s more pragmatic, both-feet-on-the-ground brother, Miguel. In addition, Lucy Liu voices Maya’s outspoken and often outrageous friend Maggie; Lupe Ontiveros plays the twins’ loveable Renaissance woman grandmother Abuela Elena. The twins’ Mexican mother, Rosa, is voiced by Elizabeth Peña and Carlos Ponce plays the twins’ Puerto Rican father, Santiago. Erik Estrada plays the friendly neighborhood mailman, Sr. Felipe and Carlos Alazraqui (Mucha Lucha, The Fairly OddParents, Jimmy Neutron, SpongeBob Squarepants) voices the Santos family’s bilingual pet parrot, Paco, whose colorful personality matches his vibrant feathers. Other cast members include Beth Payne, Jeannie Elias and Jerod Mixon.

Maya & Miguel is the centerpiece of what promises to be a very ambitious cross-company media effort by Scholastic. A number of elements will contribute to this multimedia project including compelling Web content, educational outreach materials, partnerships with community-based organizations and a publishing program. “Maya & Miguel will be everywhere children are,” said Mindy Figueroa, Project Director. “The outreach will translate the excitement of the television show into meaningful participatory activities that not only help build language skills but also enhance children’s understanding of and exposure to different cultures and ethnicities in positive, non-stereotypical presentations.” To achieve this goal, Scholastic Entertainment will utilize the company’s substantial educational and editorial expertise, along with its wide-reaching distribution capabilities and collaborate with PBS’s Ready To Learn Service.

Designed to support language acquisition, the Maya & Miguel Websites launching this September (pbskidsgo.org/mayaandmiguel and scholastic.com) will feature interactive content in both Spanish and English. Children and adults will be greeted in both languages upon entering the site and will have the opportunity to participate in activities in their primary and secondary languages.

With an unprecedented 65 half-hour episode commitment for original animated programming, the series will air Monday-Friday on PBS KIDS GO! (check local listings), reaching 99% of U.S. TV Households. A second audio track in Spanish (SAP) will be available.

Launching Fall 2004, PBS KIDS GO! is a new multimedia destination specifically created by, for and about kids in their early elementary school years — an audience underserved in today’s youth media environment, which generally targets pre-schoolers and tweens. PBS KIDS GO! offers the same high-quality, diverse, educational content that PBS KIDS’ parents have come to trust; features some of the most popular characters from PBS KIDS; and introduces new stars that kids can relate to and learn with along the way. The PBS KIDS GO! area on pbskids.org showcases all of the destination’s broadcast series, as well as companion sites including History Detectives for Kids, American Experience’s WayBack, PBS KIDS Jazz and more new Web-only programs specifically designed for this age group. With a fun, quirky environment full of surprises, PBS KIDS GO! empowers today’s “big” kids to discover themselves, define the diverse world around them, explore new relationships and embrace a love of learning.