Star Wars in Concert came to Kansas City and we almost skipped it. You see Noah has a thing for TV/movies so I had delayed showing him the movies because I figured it would be an endless battle of requests to see them again and again. I was also concerned about exposing him to the violence of an extended armed conflict. As I think about it I was only a few months older than he when I saw the first movie in its original release. Considering that the boys favorite Bible story is David and Goliath, a story of violence and conflict, I suppose the lesson for Dad is that we live in a broken and violent world. We can't avoid that reality but we can use those stories to teach.
Well I recorded a show from PBS about the making of the concert. In a few short minutes my resistance was gone. This was going to be a special experience that I would regret missing. I grabbed some tickets just days before the show and told Noah that he and Daddy were going to do something special. Of course once you open the door like that he can't just wait to find out the surprise. After a relentless series of questions and hints I told him we were going to see some Star Wars friends and some music. I have played most of the sound tracks for him, and he has seen people dressed up in Star Wars costumes on a few occasions but I don't think he really knew what he was in for. All the same he told everyone he met that he was going to see Star Wars.
When we arrived at the show he was still asking lots questions to try to figure out exactly what we were going to see. I wanted to get there plenty early because they had put on display several movie props and costumes. I shouldn't have been surprised that the props were of secondary importance to him. The highlight of the evening for him was to see all of the characters. Check out the photos below. We didn't even wait to take off our coat before he was jumping in line to visit the first character. I don't think he ever decided who his favorite was but meeting R2-D2 had to be at the top of the list.
On to the concert. There was no way to really prepare him so we just had to dive right in. It was a wonderful production really. Anthony Daniels, aka C3-PO, was our MC. Anthony gave a brief explanation of each stage of the Star Wars saga then the orchestra followed with music from the soundtrack accompanied by a series of movie highlights on a giant screen. For the first half of the concert the only time Noah breathed was in between songs when he asked if there was going to more. It was so cute.
Intermission came and we had a chance to go visit some more "friends" and get some water. Here is a funny story for the middle of this post. While I am trying to pay for our water Noah starts talking with some other kid his age. Now he had told me that some of his friends from school would be at the concert. So the dad comes over and introduces himself. Both of us assume that they are schoolmates. Turns out the other kid attends a preschool at a synagogue. The two boys just decided to be old friends on the spot. Was that the Force bringing us together or just two boys that never met a stranger. :) Anyhow, back to our regularly scheduled post. Normally I eschew buying trinkets but I thought he might enjoy having a souvenir to remember the evening by. Ten dollars for a lightsaber keychain seemed a bit high but as Stephanie recalled it was twelve down at Disney. What a bargain! :)
The second half of the show moved rather quickly and Noah was getting used to the format. After all was said and done Noah had learned all of the secrets of the Star Wars saga. I feel bad that he didn't get to experience them in the original dramatic presentation. Hopefully he will still find the movies entertaining.
After the show I was prepared for lots of questions but Noah seemed focused on one particular element that he saw. Why did Padme die? He hasn't stopped talking about it and in fact we just now had a request to name our next child Padme Amidala and change his to Anakin. He is too young to inserting himself into a romantic scene, right?
In the end it was a perfect evening. Star Wars has had a special place in my life and I really enjoyed sharing it with him. And to think, I almost missed out on all of it.
Look Dad a Comperial Guard!
Well I recorded a show from PBS about the making of the concert. In a few short minutes my resistance was gone. This was going to be a special experience that I would regret missing. I grabbed some tickets just days before the show and told Noah that he and Daddy were going to do something special. Of course once you open the door like that he can't just wait to find out the surprise. After a relentless series of questions and hints I told him we were going to see some Star Wars friends and some music. I have played most of the sound tracks for him, and he has seen people dressed up in Star Wars costumes on a few occasions but I don't think he really knew what he was in for. All the same he told everyone he met that he was going to see Star Wars.
When we arrived at the show he was still asking lots questions to try to figure out exactly what we were going to see. I wanted to get there plenty early because they had put on display several movie props and costumes. I shouldn't have been surprised that the props were of secondary importance to him. The highlight of the evening for him was to see all of the characters. Check out the photos below. We didn't even wait to take off our coat before he was jumping in line to visit the first character. I don't think he ever decided who his favorite was but meeting R2-D2 had to be at the top of the list.
On to the concert. There was no way to really prepare him so we just had to dive right in. It was a wonderful production really. Anthony Daniels, aka C3-PO, was our MC. Anthony gave a brief explanation of each stage of the Star Wars saga then the orchestra followed with music from the soundtrack accompanied by a series of movie highlights on a giant screen. For the first half of the concert the only time Noah breathed was in between songs when he asked if there was going to more. It was so cute.
Intermission came and we had a chance to go visit some more "friends" and get some water. Here is a funny story for the middle of this post. While I am trying to pay for our water Noah starts talking with some other kid his age. Now he had told me that some of his friends from school would be at the concert. So the dad comes over and introduces himself. Both of us assume that they are schoolmates. Turns out the other kid attends a preschool at a synagogue. The two boys just decided to be old friends on the spot. Was that the Force bringing us together or just two boys that never met a stranger. :) Anyhow, back to our regularly scheduled post. Normally I eschew buying trinkets but I thought he might enjoy having a souvenir to remember the evening by. Ten dollars for a lightsaber keychain seemed a bit high but as Stephanie recalled it was twelve down at Disney. What a bargain! :)
The second half of the show moved rather quickly and Noah was getting used to the format. After all was said and done Noah had learned all of the secrets of the Star Wars saga. I feel bad that he didn't get to experience them in the original dramatic presentation. Hopefully he will still find the movies entertaining.
After the show I was prepared for lots of questions but Noah seemed focused on one particular element that he saw. Why did Padme die? He hasn't stopped talking about it and in fact we just now had a request to name our next child Padme Amidala and change his to Anakin. He is too young to inserting himself into a romantic scene, right?
In the end it was a perfect evening. Star Wars has had a special place in my life and I really enjoyed sharing it with him. And to think, I almost missed out on all of it.
Look Dad a Comperial Guard!
1 comment:
And, knowing Noah...not a single event of the evening will be forgotten EVER!! It will be a special evening spent with Dad always!
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