Festival’s Success Is Like a Dream

In 1985, John Woods went to the Peter Strauss Ranch in Agoura to perform at the outdoor theater, and he experienced more than just a sense of awe at the sight’s natural beauty: He experienced deja vu .

“This was the place that had come to me in a dream one night,” said Woods, a Canoga Park resident who is half of the children’s singing duo J. P. Nightingale, along with his wife, Pam. “I had been carrying around the memory of those mountains and valleys as a place to hold a children’s festival for a long time.”

Although the two had performed steadily for the past 10 years, building a reputation for their lively music and lyrics at festivals throughout the country, they had never sponsored a gathering of their own.

“I felt kind of silly, but I mentioned the dream to one of the park rangers that day,” Woods said. “Well, one thing just led to another.” And that year, they sponsored their first Theatre Arts Festival for Youth, better known as TAFFY, in conjunction with the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy.

The 1991 event opens Saturday. For the seventh year in a row, it will be held at the Peter Strauss Ranch.

“That first year, we somehow scraped together a handful of performers,” Woods said. “I would say maybe a total of 800 people turned out for the two days.”

But TAFFY’s popularity has grown: About 4,000 people visit the event each day. Because of the crowds, Woods has extended the activities over two weekends this year.

“It’s not easy to pull off something the size of TAFFY. But John and Pam do,” said Peter Alsop, a Topanga Canyon resident who has performed at the event since its inception. “They don’t just pay lip service to kids. This is a real tribute to children, the arts and feelings.”

Alsop, a performer for the past 19 years, knows about feelings. With a doctorate in educational psychology from Columbia University, he uses his songs to confront childhood fears straight up. His no-nonsense style of family music talks about abuse, grief, divorce, self-esteem, rape and even AIDS.

“I try to offer children a voice they can relate to. And parents, teachers and others who work directly with children use my songs as tools for their work,” Alsop said. “When people hear my songs, I want them to say, ‘Yeah, I never thought about it like that before.’ ”

Besides Alsop, other performers at TAFFY include Craig & Co., Cuica Calli School of Song and Dance, Linda Arnold, Uncle Ruthie, We Tell Stories, Dan Crow, Fujima Kansuma Kai, Jim Gamble Marionettes, Parachute Express, and Lula and Afro Brasil. There are also workshops for making puppets and masks, sculpting, and other arts and crafts; strolling clowns and jugglers.

“What we’re trying to accomplish is a spirit that’s like a dream, something timeless,” Woods said. “The festival doesn’t have an age-appropriate tag attached. It’s for the child within all of us.”

Theatre Arts Festival for Youth (TAFFY) is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday and Oct. 19 and 20 at the Peter Strauss Ranch (Lake Enchanto), 30000 Mulholland Highway, near Agoura. (Kanan Road exit off Ventura Freeway, go 2.8 miles, left on Troutdale Drive, left on Mulholland.) Tickets: $10, $9 for children 3 to 12 and free for children under 3. Parking free. Call (818) 99-TAFFY.