Grant Them an Audience

We suit them up, hurry them up, drop them off and pick them up. But how much time will we spend this summer learning with our kids?

Joe Lauderdale, director of the Laguna Playhouse Youth Theatre, has a tip that could make that idea a lot more appealing to every member of your family: The play’s the thing. Lauderdale, who has staged most of the playhouse’s youth theater productions since he took over the program in 1990, says that families who attend live theater together can be richly rewarded.

A good theater experience “can open up dialogue,” Lauderdale said. “Theater should never be a baby sitter. . . . It’s an arts experience, and you need to experience it as a family.

“It’s vital to talk with your kids after the performance,” he said, adding that even teenagers can find something to enjoy in a kids show if they come with an open mind. “Talk about what they’ve seen, see if they understood it, find out what they think. It empowers them . . . and it opens up the lines of communication.”

Summer’s somewhat relaxed pace makes it a good time to take in live shows with the kids. In the next few weeks, there are about a dozen options to choose from locally, from children’s stagings of fairy tales with cardboard sets and makeshift costumes to visually spectacular touring productions with ticket prices to match.

Most people lump any show directed at young audiences as youth theater, but Lauderdale points out that there are variations within that category that ticket buyers would be wise to recognize.

“There’s smaller groups that feature children performing for children, which is sometimes considered recreational theater,” he said. “And then there’s youth theater, which is either adults performing for young people or an inter-generational cast that uses young people in age-appropriate roles.”

The first may not always have the production values of the second, but be patient. Even a show that is far less sophisticated than the theater you may be used to can be a valuable and enjoyable experience for kids.

“Theater is theater is theater,” said Lauderdale, who has been known to trod the boards from time to time. “The young people in the production are getting an education, and the young person in the audience is getting more out of the experience than you know.”

Lots of youth productions are based on well-known fairy tales or stories, but don’t be afraid to venture beyond the tried and true, said Lauderdale, who has produced several shows by lesser known authors that deal with kid-sensitive issues such as divorce and peer pressure. If you do choose a classic, you may be in for a surprise.

“Theater is storytelling . . . and there are there are a lot of different ways to tell a story,” he said.

“We need to give our young people every experience possible that’s going to broaden their horizons, whether that’s taking them to the big blockbuster movies or to a very simple play or to a museum.

“The things that help our children use their imagination are the things that help them become who they are.”