I watched my daughter perform with a local drama group in their annual song and dance show this evening. It’s a good experience both for the audience and the performers: they get the experience of performing and of demonstrating the fruits of a year’s hard work. We get the opportunity to see what our children can do - and we get a fun evening to boot.
There are several things that distinguish such shows from their professional, West End counterparts.
Of course, these are amateur productions and the performers are between 5 or 6 years old and 16. They’re not specially selected - all are included. There are the inevitable mishaps, mistakes, dropped batons or fluffed lines. But the audience doesn’t care - and that’s the second difference between these shows and the more professional ones. We didn’t expect - much less demand - perfection. If the timing was a little out in places nobody minded. We weren’t looking for what was wrong we were looking for what was right. Every one of us was an optimist, knowing we’d be well entertained and - therefore - every one of us felt that we were very well entertained. The audience tonight weren’t consumers. We hadn’t bought ‘product’. We were there to watch our children try their best. We appreciated our own kids and we appreciated everybody else’s kids too. We wanted them to do well - all of them.
The highlight of the evening illustrated this superbly. One young girl was evidently very nervous as she stood up to sing her solo. Her anxiety was written on her face, signalled by her tense body language, transmitted by her faltering voice. In a brief pause in the song an audience that was 110% on her side broke into spontaneous applause and cheers. It became apparent that she wasn’t sure of all the words. People began to sing along with her until the whole audience (well, those that are up to date with the latest tunes - so count me out) were singing. When she finished she got the loudest roar of approval of the whole evening.
It’s worth being reminded at times that in a world gone bad there are many, many kids working hard to improve themselves, supported by parents - and aunts and uncles and grandparents - who believe in doing the right thing. It’s a very heartening thing to witness.
