As you probably know, one of my
favorite places is Children's Fairyland in Oakland. It's an oasis of gentleness,
scaled to the size of a small child and guided by the principle established back
in 1950 by its co-founders, William Penn Mott and Arthur Navlet: "No
straight lines and a surprise around every corner."
I love the animals, who live far
beyond their normal life spans because of the TLC they get. I love the lack of
conventional "rides." I love the storytellers and the puppet shows
and Willie the Whale.
But most of all, I love the
Children's Theatre Program, which selects 30 kids ages 8 to 10 each year and
turns them into accomplished performers. The kids gain theater skills in
acting, improvisation, singing and dance, as well as life skills like teamwork,
leadership, cultural understanding and confidence. And they have a ton of fun
in the process.
This year, they're going to perform
"Ozma Of Oz" (the first Oz story Fairyland has done in more than a decade),
a Latin American story called "Bear Print" and another tale yet to be
determined.
And that's just the beginning. They
also serve as Fairyland's ambassadors to the outside world. Playing their
storybook characters, they greet visitors to the park ("Hi. I'm Snow
White. Welcome to Fairyland.") and represent Fairyland at public events,
including the Piedmont July 4th Parade and the Oakland Holiday
Parade.
But to me, their most important
role is as mentors and role models for the younger kids who visit the park.
They paint the little ones' faces, read to them, assist them with arts and
crafts and hold their hands and help them find their parents if they get lost.
They also caution the little tykes
not to cross the Magic Pink Line in front of the puppet stage because if they
cross it, the puppets will get scared and run off the stage. (Cynics might say
the real reason is that if you get too close, you can see the strings.)
I once saw a Fairyland Personality
painting a daisy on a little girl's cheek, and the adoration on the younger child's
face said it all: She was stunned that a big kid was being so kind to her. And it
was clear that what she wanted more than anything else in the world was to be
the same way when she became a big kid herself.
Auditions for the 2014 class of Fairyland
Personalities will take place January 25 and 26. You can start the ball rolling
by registering online (or downloading a faxable PDF) at fairyland.org and
clicking on the Children's Theatre Auditions button on the lower left corner.
At the audition your child will be
asked to perform a two-minute performance, at least one minute of which must be
an oral recitation of a memorized poem or monolog. For the other minute, he/she
can either continue the oral presentation or sing, dance or play an instrument.
A tape/CD player and MP3 jack will be available.
"You don't have to live in
Oakland to be a Fairyland Personality, and no previous theatrical experience is
necessary," says Children's Theatre Program Director Doyle Ott. "What
we're looking for is children who love to sing, act and dance."
Go for it, kids! And good luck!
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