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Time Forges Onward

4/2/2021

It really is a small world. The other day, I learned that my neighbor's daughter is engaged to a young man with an unusual name. That name rang a bell for me. As if being roused from a deep sleep, the memories of a different time, a different place, and a different cast of characters came flooding back. I remembered that young man from when he was about age 10. He was in one of my Children's Theater productions back when I lived in Maryland.

Fourteen years ago now, a group of like-minded parents and I got together and helped our children put on a show. So many families wanted to be involved! All totaled, there were 75 children between the ages of 2 1/2 to 15. Fortunately, nearly all the parents, and even some interested bystanders, chipped in to lend a hand.

Never Cry Wolf is probably my most popular show. And it is easy to see why. It has a very FLEXIBLE CAST that can be expanded or diminished as needed. It has parts that can accommodate very young children without lowering the expectations of the young teenagers.

All of the cast members are busy throughout the entire 60 minute production. They are shown doing the daily WORK of people in ancient Greece. The activities of the Farmers, Shepherds, Soldiers, Merchants, Artisans, Servants, Weavers, Politicians, Sheep, the Family and even the Muses all show this slice of daily life from so long ago. The songs and dances are very fun, too.

The children in these pictures are no longer little kids. Many have grown up, gone to college, started their careers, served missions, travelled the world, gotten married, and some even have their own children now. But I like to remember who they were then. Too bad we can't stop the March of Time!

Writing for a Male or a Female Protagonist?

3/24/2021

Writing Children's Theater (for ages 5-12) from classic fairy tales, folk tales or fables AND keeping recognizable characters and plot lines, can be challenging. Many of these traditional tales involve having male protagonists. In other words, the story revolves around a male main character who goes out on a QUEST or a hero's journey, or has bad things happen to him that he must overcome --- Sinbad, Hercules, Aladdin, Pinocchio, The Boy Who Cried Wolf. Some stories are generic enough that a female can be substituted in the protagonist role, but then the title has to change because it carries a male name. Unfortunately, with that change, the production loses the valuable advantage of NAME RECOGNITION.

When a female is the protagonist in Children's Theater and has famous name recognition --- Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, The Little Mermaid, Rapunzel -- as a director, you have a hard time getting boys to join the cast. Young boys usually stay far away from any play that even hints of a love story.

So, what does a writer/director of Children's Theater do?

Well, first I look for stories that have a recognizable title with NO gender name in it --- The Country Mouse and the City Mouse, The Empty Pot, (A Successor to the Throne), The Musicians of Bremen, Stone Soup, The Tale of Chicken Licken, and The Ants and the Grasshopper.

These stories are the easiest to reimagine with a FLEXIBLE CAST. That means that the protagonist and other characters do not necessarily need to be a particular gender.

(These are good for the casts that have many more girls than boys, which seems to be the norm in Children's Theater.)

Since I ALWAYS want to attract boys as well as girls to my shows, I may use a story with a male name in the title, but make sure it has NO LOVE STORY and plenty of good roles for BOTH GENDERS. I have found that creating good female roles for a show that has a male protagonist is easier to sell to boy participants than the other way around --- Momotaro, The Adventures of Dick Whittington, The Boy Who Cried Wolf, (Never Cry Wolf), The Three Billy Goats Gruff

An exception, has been Parizade's Quest - a tale from the Arabian Nights. This show has a definite female protagonist in the title, but also has four other strong lead roles for girls, as well as many important secondary female roles. (In fact, Parizade is not the actual main female lead.) It also has five strong male lead roles, and many strong secondary roles for boys. It has NO ROMANTIC LOVE STORY but does have a REUNITING of a FAMILY LOVE STORY. (The boys were okay with that.)

I actually wrote this show for a group of kids I knew pretty well at a local elementary school. Of the 45 kids in the cast, we had about equal numbers of boys and girls --- VERY UNUSUAL FOR CHILDREN'S THEATER!

Creative Entertainment

3/15/2021

"We're practicing POSTURE so we can become princesses."
Megan and Maya were balancing heavy books on their heads as they paraded around the family room in their princess dresses. Their mother told me that each had gotten some money for Christmas. They studied online catalogues and finally found these dresses that fit their budgets. So they decided to buy them. Now they like to practice Princess skills --- like walking with perfect posture and having tea parties using their best manners.

When I went in to spy on them and take these pictures, they had set a beautiful table and even had Classical Music playing for ambience. These are such creative girls! Watching hours and hours of television or playing endless video games are just not permitted in this family except for brief periods in the evening. So, after homeschool activities and chores are done, these girls spend their free time creatively entertaining themselves. On my recent visit to their house in Pennsylvania, I got to watch this creative play for five days straight.

A different day they spent drawing, coloring and designing paper dolls. Megan told me that she really loved the book I sent them for Christmas about when I was young and loved to play with paper dolls. "We're making costumes, and sportswear and glamorous evening dresses --- just like in your book, Grandma!"

She knew just what to say to melt her Grandma's heart.

"We just aren't having a drawing contest!" added Maya.

Good girls! They understood the message of the story! (I love these girls!)

YouTube Video https://youtu.be/YSFDSr_w6lc

Being Happy is a Choice

3/9/2021

Being happy is a choice.

How many times in my life have I heard this? Too many times to enumerate, that's for sure!
Probably your mother told you this when you were growing up. I know I have found myself speaking (in my own mother's voice) these same words to my children --- especially the ones who did not want to wake up early for school --- or at 5:00 am to get ready for Early Morning Seminary.

My high school friend's mother used to wake her up by coming into her room singing "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" at the top of her lungs. My friend usually levitated very quickly in hopes that would STOP her mother's vocalizing.

While visiting my daughter's family last week in Pennsylvania, I took the opportunity to record four granddaughters singing some of my kid's songs. These girls were willing to learn 14 new songs for me. One of the songs was "Good Mornin' Sunshine" from the play The Tale of Chicken Licken. Nine-year-old Maya told me that this was her favorite song. "It just makes me happy, Grandma!" Maya likes "Good Mornin' Sunshine" because it is all about the animals on the farm, and she likes their little mini-farm.

Hen with hands

This family began raising chickens last Easter. Those eight chicks are now egg-laying hens. Apparently, they each have unique personalities and do some very silly, but entertaining things.

Recently, the girls thought it might be funny if the hens had HANDS. So their brother Tanner used his 3D printer and made little hands for the chickens.

The girls even put them on their own heads. Now if that isn't silly...

It brings a smile to your face and giggle to your heart, just like the song...

"Good Mornin' Sunshine" sung by Maya, Megan, Melanie, and Makayla.

The Musicians of Bremen Mini-Musical

2/21/2021

Sadness always comes at the passing of loved ones and people we may not have known personally, but have admired. Sadness (for us mainly) at not having them around to guide us anymore. Certainly not sadness for the ones who have passed. They are released from this world of pain and strife to a glorious reunion with God and their other loved ones on the other side. But we are still left with a feeling of needing to pick up the pieces and find a new way to carry on. Maybe I am just getting old enough myself to have known many great people who have fulfilled their time on earth. That doesn't really make the transitions any easier.

Several years ago now, I wrote a Mini-Musical "The Tale of the Musicians of Bremen." Until recently, I don't think I truly understood that story. I usually dismissed it as un-musical. Who wants to be entertained by animals with obnoxious voices who think they are great singers? In my adolescent thinking, I missed the entire point of the story.

From my more mature vantage point now, I think I am coming to understand it better. This story is about FEAR of CHANGE and facing GROWING OLD -- two topics that the young have no use for whatsoever. Young people are all about embracing CHANGE. And they are usually very EXCITED ABOUT GROWING OLDER. But for people who are truly facing OLD AGE, they encounter complications of ill-health, becoming useless and unwanted, and possibly dying alone.

These are pretty heavy themes, and not the normal stuff of Children's Theater Musicals.

So how can this story be told with songs and staged in a way that is entertaining? Can it actually show many layers of meaning so that those with ears to hear and eyes to see can understand -- but younger children can still find humor and feel joy?

Hopefully, through this mini-musical, the plight of the animals can be seen for what it is --- a fable about facing the universal fears of CHANGE and GROWING OLD with doses of humor and fun songs to delight audiences of many ages.

Lessons from Disappointments

1/29/2021

I was fortunate to grow up in a musical family with a very creative mother. She could make things happen, not just for her own children, but for anyone else who happened to be standing around. Because of her wonderful talents, she could take regular folks and make them feel like they could do anything --- sing, dance, paint scenery, sew costumes, write scripts, and so forth. In short, my mother was great at helping people gain confidence in themselves. And she was right there making them look good ---- usually from the PIANO BENCH. For example, she was always producing SHOWS --- for school groups, church groups, community groups, the neighborhood kids, her piano and voice students, as well as her own family. People loved her and were drawn to her, not just because of her marvelous talents, but because she genuinely LOVED PEOPLE.

Carolyn Lee with 5 of her 6 kids at Christmas in Ohio

Her immense talents could pose trouble for her children, though. Many times, we were passed over for special opportunities. Then, the "people in charge" felt that they had to explain. "Well, obviously your daughter (or son) was the most talented or qualified for this, but she will always have opportunities in her life. That's why we chose ________ instead." Because our family moved around the country a lot, the "people in charge" never saw that these "special opportunities" didn't really materialize for us.

I always wondered why the "people in charge" felt compelled to say things like that. Why didn't they just post the cast list? Why come to us to try to justify themselves in making their choice? It didn't make any of us feel better ---- quite the reverse.

Even in college, I ran into "people in charge" who acted this same way. For instance, I had auditioned for and been chosen to go on European tour as a singer with the jazz band. Then just before we were to leave, the "person in charge" came to me and said, "You are just too pretty and too good a singer for us. We have decided that you can't go after all." (I suppose that had that happened in more recent times, I would have been encouraged to bring up sexual harassment charges against him. But, we didn't know about things like that back then. I didn't even think I was all that pretty!)

Thank goodness, I was raised by a mother who instilled in us that we can grow from our disappointments --- even if we must use our God-given talents along different avenues. I may never know why I was passed over for so many desirable special opportunities in my life, but, I know enough about disappointments that I can go on despite them.

Planning Real Shows in a Virtual World

1/25/2021

Who would want to see a play without seeing the kids' cute faces?

It is an acknowledged fact that technology has been changing exponentially year to year. Well, back when when cassette tape recorders were new and PA systems were too expensive for wide usage, our little group of performers had to come up with some creative solutions to mount a little play.

We were to perform before an audience of 500+ excited teenagers at a Youth Conference. The only microphone was at the speaker's podium. While our little play could be performed by just a few actors and it did have relatively few lines, we had to rely on broad gestures and larger than life facial expressions for the physical comedy. We could not huddle together taking turns at one stationary microphone hidden behind a large wooden podium!!!!!!

So, we pre-recorded the entire audio of our play --- lines and singing as well as musical underscoring. We really had to practice to judge the timing since we had to guess the dimensions of our stage and the reactions of the audience in advance of getting to the venue. And if we actually spoke or sang along, we couldn't hear well enough to stay in sync with the tracks. So, we had to mouth the words. During the performance we played the recording by setting the cassette tape player right at the podium mic. (Wow! That was advanced technology!)

The point is, that the pre-recording allowed us to do our play in that large hall with the noisy, boisterous audience and still pull off a successful performance.

I am wondering if pre-recording the vocals might be one way I could do my Theater Camp this summer. If I bring in the children to record their vocals by family groups (pods), then when we perform, could we mouth the words and take off the masks? If singing is the "mass spreader" of coronavirus, then just mouthing the words with no singing should not cause problems, right?

I just cannot imagine doing a children's musical without seeing the kids cute faces. It is just too important. Why would parents put their kids in a performance experience if the kids can't get the whole experience?

Picture Book with No Words

1/17/2021

Carolyn (age 3) with friend Brian

My daughter called me the other day and announced that she had an idea for my next Picture Book. She reminded me of a story I used to tell about her, but she said that it should be a story without words. When I started to protest, she assured me that this particular story would work very well with just pictures, and no words. She then told me her version of the story scene by scene. The trouble was that what she remembered and what I remembered were two very different stories.

(She was, after all, only three when it took place.)

Even so, what she said certainly gave me a lot to think about. So, last week I tried getting some sketches down on paper. Doing just drawings with enough energy and expression is a tall order for me. I feel like I am still honing my skills and have no particular style yet. I have always leaned on the text to make the story clear. Could my drawings really be good enough to carry the storyline?

Well, I decided to tell my version of the story in any case. However, she did give me a lot of great ideas on how to vary the sight lines and vantage points. So, I will try to use some of those, for variety. In a way, telling a story just from the pictures leaves a lot of room for on-the-spot embellishment. Each "reading" could end up quite different from the original story, until the last page anyway. Until that last page, no one could know what the story is actually about. And even then, would anybody believe it?

Points to ponder...

Let's Just Build a Stage

1/10/2021

“Well, then, let’s build a stage! We have the technology and we can get the budget and the manpower!”

This statement came from one very helpful and skilled father.

Our little group of parents and friends wanted to do a show allowing our kids to have a fun summer activity. We were given permission to do it at the Church building as a two-week Summer Camp. That was not the problem. The problem was that our Church building had no stage.

In my mind, I concluded that this was our best chance to make our show a success. If we were to put our children through so much effort learning a show, we had better make it possible for the audience to see it. There really is nothing worse than going to your child's or grandchild’s production only to find that the room is too crowded and you can’t see over the heads of the people in front of you!

So, this Dad called in his troops and built us a stage. Meanwhile, the other Moms and I rehearsed with the 45 children ages 4 to 14, taught them lines and singing, choreographed their dances, made their costumes, and even supervised educational and recess activities for them. We were all having a fun and exciting time, until...

My worst fear became apparent! The plywood stage became a drum when the children walked on it. It only amplified the sound of the kids' footfalls. And I didn’t dare let them dance on it for fear of them falling off!

Obviously, the solution through the ages has been --- elevate the performers on a raised stage OR --- ELEVATE THE AUDIENCE! That was it! We decided to use the plywood platforms to raise the audience in graduated seating sections. The children stayed safe and danced their hearts out all over the gym floor.

The Children’s Musical was a great success and the audience was thrilled to be able to see and hear it all!

"A Successor to the Throne" 2006 Summer Camp in Bel Air, Maryland

Do They Perform in English?

1/9/2021

Years ago now, I was asked to write a few song songs to accompany a project for students learning English as a Second Language. One of the tools the proprietor used is Reader's Theater renditions of famous tales, in English, of course. The company out of Taiwan hired talented artists as illustrators and English professors to re-write the stories and scripts using very simple phrases and vocabulary. These books are absolutely beautifully done.

Back then, I was shown 25 stories and was asked to provide engaging songs for them. Not feeling very secure in the assignment, I told him that I would choose five stories and write 2 songs for each of them. That way, he could see if they would add to the experience or be too much. He agreed, and I set out to write some simple songs at a First Grader's level and vocabulary. (He did not specify that i had to keep the music simple.)

The stories I chose were "The Musicians of Bremen," "The City Mouse and the Country Mouse," "The Three Billy Goats Gruff," "Dick Whittington's Cat," and "Chicken Licken."

Well, I liked the songs and wanted to write my own shows using them. Permission was granted, so I proceeded to create some 10-15 minute mini-musicals for in-class presentations and some full scale 30-45 minute shows for larger casts. on the main stage.

School Chorus production incorporating "The Musicians of Bremen"

Since then (2012), I have had no feedback that these songs have been used or even if they were useful in Asia, but they have been well enjoyed in musicals here in America.

Just today, I learned that two of my mini-musicals were bought by someone in China. So, that begs the question, "Will these little shows be performed in English?" My heart wants to think that somewhere in China a school group is learning English as a second language and the teacher wants to do a more full-scale show than just an in-class Reader's Theater. I hope this is the case and I wish them well as they perform "The Tale of the Musicians of Bremen" and "The Tale of the City Mouse and the Country Mouse."

Summer Camp cast forming a circle to dance "A Country Mouse."

The "Brementown Musicians" has a bit of German flair accompanying the obnoxious sounds of the animals. "A Country Mouse" is done with some good old American Hoedown flavor.