kiddos

Spending time with people younger than myself has been a constant thread in my life. I've been a classroom assistant, counselor at the Y, group leader at an outdoor science school, and spent nearly six years teaching music with the Young Americans....
But nothing has come close to the experience I've shared with the kiddos in Belasco Theatre Company. Children 8 to 18 work for a few months to share their joy in performance, and I am the luckiest, getting to fill the position of assistant director. Now teaching, the instruction of song, dance, and performance, has always been a passion, but it is what happens between the notes, between the steps, which keeps me coming back. I love my kids. And I call them MY kids because we're now connected by shared interests and experiences. They ask me about the show, they ask me about their staging and notes, but they also come to me as a mentor, a trusted adult figure. I've been consulted for advice on prom dates, audition songs, family dramas, and friends' depression. Now I'm not saying this to get a pat on the back, far from it. I don't think it's any kind of magic that these kids confide in me. I think it's for the simple fact that I LISTEN. And I make sure they know I'm there to listen. Kids are pretty simple creatures, but so often as adults we blame exterior influences when unable to connect or understand them. Wake up call, folks, we were kids once, too!!! Perhaps it's the fact that I struggled with depression, I longed to be accepted, and I had a passion for performance that I connect with these kids in particular, but I think every one of us is capable of reaching out and helping at least one child. In this world of fast paced, constant stimulating technology, I think one of the greatest gifts we can give is time spent with a child. Whether they're 8 or 18, each of them has thoughts, needs, hopes and dreams they long to express. So if you have the means, REACH OUT! You may be surprised how easy and rewarding it can be!