May. 26, 2010 - Issue #762: Timeland

Prevue

For the kids

International Children's Fest offers more than television

Kids aren't always easy to please, and it's not always possible to find an attraction that will keep their attention span set on one fixed place. However, with the International Children's Festival around the corner, Adam Dymburt hopes that audiences young and old will be entertained.

Dymburt, general manager, tour manager and lead performer for the production At Nightfall, one of 10 mainstage events at this year's festival, says that after performing the show for six years, he finds the kids' attention spans astonishing, given they're so used to what he calls "zappy shows."

"Their concentration spans are not worked on in any way whatsoever," he says, "and they're constantly watching TV, zapping from one program to another or watching commercials, 15 in about five minutes. They're always getting zapped by different things very quickly."

Dymburt says that, like TV, some performances for children are designed to get big reactions, whereas At Nightfall is stress-free on family audiences as it is a slow and poetic show, different from what kids usually get. It follows the tale of Auguste (Dymburt), a hard-working shoemaker who never takes holidays. He knows little about life outside his work and he's afraid whenever he's far from the comfort of his workshop. After discovering another world, Auguste comes to unlock happiness, joy and laughter in his own life.

It's just one part of the International Children's Festival designed for kids to experience art, expression, culture and creativity. Other mainstage acts include a retelling of Jason and the Argonauts with action figures, and The Man Who Planted Trees, about a French shepherd and his dog whose goal is to re-forest a desolate valley.

Although children know the quick pace of television these days rather than the slower pace of a performance like his own, Dymburt doesn't think crafting a children's show is any more difficult than any other project, as it's based on the choices made by an artistic or choreographic director. However, he explains that it can be harder to sell than to create it.

"How do you sell something, that people aren't used to seeing, that we think is very important for families and children to see?" he says. "[It's harder] because we're not doing things that have a sort of brand name attached to them. For instance, it's not Coca-Cola, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs or Cinderella. It's not any kind of name that people can recognize."

Even though sometimes it's hard to sell a production to kids, Dymburt hopes that the children and families that end up in his audience will learn a life lesson—and maybe look for entertainment elsewhere other than the television.

"I hope what kids take away from this is that good things can happen in life, that life is good and that things can change in life. Change is OK—a person doesn't have to stay exactly the same way forever. They can decide, 'OK, I want to change!' or that things in life can happen that will make you change. I hope they go away with a feeling that they want to see more things on stage saying 'I never heard of this!' and that they will leave open the door to seeing all kinds of things." V


Tue, Jun 1 – Sat, Jun 5
International Children's Festival
Featuring At Nightfall, The Man Who Planted Trees
Arden Theatre, (5 St Anne Street), St Albert, $8.50 – $10
For a full schedule of events and locations, go to childfest.com vueweekly.com comments: powered by Disqus