Come Back, White Witch ...

I'm pretty sure this lovely (and very scary) lady in white might be responsible for the full week of wintery whiteness we just had in our town.

 

 

We were encased in fog and sub-30 temps for days, with the trees completely coated in white frost. Gorgeous! A little winter wonderland.

 

Head a few miles down the hill, and we'd discover blue, sunny skies and temps that were a few degrees warmer.

 

It just so happened that - in the midst of all this wintery whiteness - we saw the Oregon Children's Theatre's production of 'The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe'. It was like our little city was Narnia ... minus the Turkish Delights.

The actress playing the White Witch did her job well ... scaring the bejeezus out of our poor daughter. I felt so bad. She was a year+ above the recommended minimum age, but I had to peel her off my arm at the end. She's used to Playhouse Disney and OPB ... not Narnia! :-) It was only because the friendly actress suggested the above picture that K got anywhere close to her!

Today, it's gray and rainy outside ... and I want our winter wonderland back! :-) Oh, White Witch ... where are you?! You can bring the whiteness back ... but maybe leave your evil scariness at the castle. :-)

It Was Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!

I'm quite certain I was even more excited than my children that we were going to see the musical, Mary Poppins. They had never heard of Mary Poppins, nor were they familiar with any of the famous songs.  Given that the show we attended was on a weeknight and started an hour before their bedtime, I was banking on the hope that it would be an energetic and awe-inspiring performance.

And, oh my, was it ever!

The cast of Mary Poppins is amazingly talented; and the special-effects and 'mechanics' of what's happening on the stage are mind-blowing!! What an incredible production! We were so happy we went ... and, thankfully, our 9-year old son and 5-year old daughter LOVED it and were entertained throughout the entire production (mostly! :-)).

Our favorite moment was the tap dance number, "Step In Time", by Mary Poppins & the Chimney Sweeps ... including Bert walking up the wall and tap-dancing (and singing) on the ceiling! Incredible. It made me want to learn how to tap dance.

The kids have been attempting to sing "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" ever since. Since it's a new word to them, it has been entertaining to hear the variations they come up with. :-)

If you have the chance to go see the Broadway Across America tour of Mary Poppins ... do it! And, enjoy! :-)

It's My Top Secret Personal Beeswax ...

"It's my Top Secret Personal Beeswax .... doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo" .... it would help if you could actually hear the melody that accompanies these words. The tune, along with these first six words of the song, keep playing in my head as if on repeat! So, maybe it's best you can't hear the melody ... because then it would be replaying in your head too!

I think I was looking forward to this day more than my son. The minute I heard that his first grade class would be attending a Junie B. Jones musical/play, I promptly volunteered to chaperone! I didn't want to miss the chance to see a children's book adapted onto the stage!

I am quite aware of the Junie B. Jones character and have thumbed through several books ... but, I must admit, I haven't read through an entire story yet. Don't furrow your brow ... it's just because my son is at the age to be reading this type of book, and Junie B. Jones hasn't really been his thing. Now ... in a few years, when my daughter is in the first grade, I suspect Junie B. Jones might be a regular on our reading list! Actually ... after seeing today's play, it might be on my son's as well.

Theatreworks USA's production of Junie B. Jones' "Top Secret Personal Beeswax" gets an A+ from me. Yes, it's designed for Grades K-5, but what adult wouldn't be wowed by upbeat songs, fantastic choreography, endearing and hilarious characters (played by super-talented actors!), and a fantastic story line ... all packed into one hour?!

The challenges Junie B. Jones has to triumph over in her first grade year would make your head spin ... losing her best friend, Lucille, to Camille and Chenille (because their names all rhyme!); finding out she needs glasses; making friends with the new kid at school; dealing with Tuna Noodle Stinkle in the lunchroom; and not being able to compete in the kickball tournament due to a piggy toe injury! Oh my! Lucky for her, she can write it all down in her Top-Secret Personal Beeswax Journal.

It all makes for a very entertaining tale ... one with a wonderfully embedded message of how to deal with life's unexpected changes and new experiences in positive ways! And we all need to be reminded of how to do that every once in a while ... whether we're in first grade or ... well ... in our mid-to-late thirties! :-)