Blizzards. Fires. Grasshopper invasions. Just days in the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder, Wisconsin pioneer girl, who was born in a log cabin near Lake Pepin in 1867. The famed Little House on the Prairie author grew up here (as well as in Kansas, Minnesota, and South Dakota) along with Ma, Pa, dog Jack, and sisters Mary, Carrie, and Grace. Now Chippewa Valley second- through sixth-graders will be able to see ArtsPower’s theatrical production of Laura Ingalls Wilder, on April 29, 2014, at the State Theatre in downtown Eau Claire thanks to a $5,000 grant from Xcel Energy to fund the 2014 TA-DA! (Teach Arts-Discover Arts) children’s theater series. “Students will have the opportunity to see professional theater at an affordable price,” said Ben Richgruber, executive director of the Eau Claire Regional Arts Council, which oversees the State Theatre. With the state cutting funding for the arts (Wisconsin now ranks 47th in the nation), support from businesses such as Xcel is critical for future creative types like Laura to thrive here.