Peyton and I love to see live performances. Tonight we attended a performance of Twelve Dancing Princesses at Stages Theatre. Usually before we attend a play I like to read Peyton the book. Not only does it get her excited to see the play but it also gives me an idea of what to expect. However, this time around that did not happen. I really had no idea what we were going to see but I was not too concerned. Every single performance we have attended at Stages Theatre has been great.
If you cannot tell Peyton was pretty excited to see the show. All she knew was there were 12 princesses and she could not wait to see the dresses! I was looking forward to an hour or so of entertainment uninterrupted. Peyton usually sits still and does not talk during plays.
As soon as we heard the announcement the play was going to start we settled in. And then the lights dimmed. The first thing we saw were all these girls dancing in beautiful dresses and signing. Peyton was squealing with delight. She loved all the dresses.
Now I don’t want to spoil the play for those who do not know the story line. But there is a disclaimer that needs to be made. The mother has passed away and is present in the story as a ghost. It is not scary by any means. But if you have lost a loved one and your child is sensitive to death I would probably not see this. My daughter had no issue with the fact the mom had passed but I did her some little kids crying at parts in the play. There are some touching moments when the King is signing about his late wife. I even teared up. And for some kids that can be overwhelming. Only you will know if your kid can handle it.
We loved 12 Dancing Princesses. The actors and actresses were amazing as always. My daughter’s favorite was the mom (of course my kid would love the character based on a spirit). The play had a nice pace. Kept my 4, almost 5, year old engaged the whole time. I believe it lasted just a little over an hour and it seemed to pass very fast.
One of my favorite things about seeing shows at Stages Theatre is after EVERY show the actors and actresses come out and sign the playbill! Your child gets to meet and collect autographs of everyone. That is by far my daughter’s favorite part. They are always the most pleasant and gracious group of people. You can tell they are doing something they truly love. Tonight my daughter did not like the naughty prince and she was pretty cold to him. But he (Theodore Emo) was such a professional about it.
Here’s our playbill from tonight. Every single cast member signed it. I have saved all our playbills so when Peyton is older she can look back at all the plays she has seen. Her favorite part is collecting everyone’s signatures and I think it is so neat they do that. Not all theatres do. We have been to several shows that when the show is over the cast and crew are all behind stage. I think coming out and interacting with the kids just gives them more excitement and enthusiasm for the performing arts.
If you can not tell Peyton had a blast tonight! It’s a little bit of a drive for us to see shows at Stages Theatre but it is always worth it. Tonight we also got to see what it in store for next season! And I cannot wait. In my opinion this is the best season line up I have ever seen at Stages. I love sharing these experiences with my daughter. We are fortunate to live in an area with so many options for quality theatre. Stages Theatre is by far our favorite place to see shows.
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