June 6. Day 157. Ahoy there

I turned down a most awesome deal today. This bloke was sitting next to me with a quite delightful baby boy on his lap. I commented on the child's cuteness and he proposed a swap. I could have his and he'd take mine. Not only that he'd throw in another three he had sitting on the other side. Deal. What he didn't know was that mine is in Year 12 and doing exams this week. Right now, I'd take a baby every time. But here's the thing. Every age has its challenges and nature has a way of making us forget. So doubtless the fondness I have for those preschool years comes from the rose tinted glasses of distance. You do forget. But I can tell you one thing I have not forgotten about those early years and that's the joy of the first experiences of live entertainment. Being in the audience of Studio Theatre's Super Weekend Show Princess and Pirate Party this morning brought it all back. There were pirates, puppets and play in a show perfectly pitched at preschoolers. The kids (and their big people) had the nicest time. Young kids make the best (and if you play them wrongly the worst) audience. They don't play by the polite rules of theatre etiquette. They call it exactly as they see it. And clearly what they saw this morning was exactly to their liking.  They also loved the opportunity to meet and greet the cast in the cafe after the show. My favourite moment came when a little girl (I think she may have been one of the members of the take-one-get-three-free deal ethics had prevented me from accepting earlier) decided to embark on a round of 20 questions with the Pirate King (AKA Damien Lee). "Why is your beard green? Where did you get your coat? Where's your mother? Who do you live with? Do you ever take your coat off? " and so it went. For every answer there was just another question. I might not have agreed to take her home now but I would be most unsurprised if she turns up in my journalism class in a few years time. I'd also be unsurprised if I see her and her siblings at big people theatre as well. Because that's another thing I know for sure. Drama Teen became Drama Teen because of those early theatre years. Folk like Damien Lee and puppeteer Brett Hansen have a lot to answer for. I must send them a thank-you card.