I’ve previously mentioned that Justine joined a local theatre group this month. She’s just one of the little ones involved, so I didn’t know how much time it would all take when we first started. But in this troupe, every actor is considered equal so I took her to a lot of rehearsals. Last week was the week the play went on so it was particularly busy. But she loved every minute she was there…even if there were some exhausted collapses after hours. To quote Justine: “I fit in PERFECTLY with those people.”

Sigh. And my heart expands a little, making room for her (and me) to enjoy it.

She’s only five, though she identifies as twenty-three ( I just asked her.)  I guess she thinks this group of make-believers see her as she wants to be seen. This was an opportunity that came up, but it has been fun and strange to be on the other side of it: drop offs and pick ups, painting backdrops, taking photos, baking cookies. I never thought I’d be a stage mom…but I was last week. It just seems she’s too young to drop her for such long periods, though I can use the babysitting help. I haven’t been able to commit to the hours necessary for a Kindergarten Room Mom, so this seemed the next best.

I grew up doing theatre myself. I remember the magic. I remember the wild head space for play and meeting others in theirs. I remember the lights in my eyes. But after too many years ( I was a performance major in college and then chased the off-Broadway life in New York through my twenties) I turned my back. It became something else, something false and destructive. Long story—basically I found I’d lost the passion and decided never to look at it again.

So it’s been unexpectedly fun to watch Justine become immediately enamored with the theatre, at least this experience in particular. She got to play a duckling and a tadpole in HONK!, a telling of The Ugly Duckling. 

The cast worked very hard and performed well. I was impressed how the older actors looked after the younger ones in everything from coaching to costuming. The director encouraged her cast to  “figure it out.” I could see the life skills engaging in front of my eyes: listening, speaking, collaborating, accepting, working with others who seem totally different from yourself, resourcefulness, language, movement, emotional intelligence, humanity, creativity, empathy, and making friendships…all under the umbrella of magic-making.

What’s not to love?