Weekly Journal
Week 1: 11/8-11/9(6 Hours)
Week 2: 11/15-11/16(6 Hours)
Week 3: 11/22-11/23(16 Hours)
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Week 4: 11/28-11/30(24 Hours)
Week 5: 12/6-12/7(16 Hours)
Week 6: 12/13-12/14(16 Hours)
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Closing Report
I’ve been working at the Great Dicken’s Christmas Fair for the past five years and have loved every moment of it. Being an older girl in a group of child actors and teachers who remind me of the wonderful, open-minded learners and facilitators at ACLC has turned this 12 hour long show into a third home for me- ACLC being my second home. Most of the other children and teens have been there way longer than I have; most of them, since they were born. So imagine my surprise when the director of our group, Robin, asked me to not only think of running my own little scene within our group sometime soon, but let me intern to be a possible assistant director!
I’ve barely been here very long and I’m already feeling so welcome and trusted. Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect when I first asked to help out, but I figured it was just being asked to do a little bit more than what I usually did as one of the older kids. And sure enough, for the most part, it was. I took three or four kids on trips to the actor bathroom whenever one kid needed to go. I helped anyone who needed help with buttons and laces when putting on costumes. I rehearsed our Mother Goose stage show and Toy Parade with the kids. Although, there were a few important changes that really got me excited.
First off, one of the stage directors told us to change the Mother Goose Show into something that would tell the kids what to expect around the fair. Basically, she wanted us to perform an infomercial. So Robin wrote a rough draft of the script and asked one of the assistant directors/parents, Jerusha, and I to edit the script for her. We edited it enough for the first performance and then I learned to watch the audience’s reactions and tweaked it further. Honestly, since we were forced to limit it to being an infomercial, it was obviously not going to hold children’s attention that well. Thank goodness the lady who asked us to do that realized it and told us we didn’t have to do it anymore.
Going back to an earlier point of my job that didn’t change; another great skill I acquired besides scripting is an important tool any wannabe-parent would need under their belt: the art of discipline. Dicken’s Fair has put me through many awkward obstacles in my time here: getting dressed in front of other, helping kids wipe their bottoms, etc. Although one that wasn’t as awkward as some of these but still barely in there was putting Robin’s kid through the torture of a timeout. Thankfully, both Robin herself and good friend of mine named Caitlyn helped me through. Caitlyn stayed with me so I wouldn’t be alone and Robin taught me a cool tip for how long I should let a timeout be. She told me to just let the disciplined kid’s age be the number of minutes we keep them “locked up” for, and I’m definitely going to keep that rule in my pocket for if I’m ever lucky enough to be a mother.
Although the biggest change-that I have a feeling is permanent-is being brought into the adult’s inner circle a little more. Whenever Robin held an important meeting with adults about rules and such; I was right next to her, sharing my feedback and opinions as they listened and gave their own. I would also hang out with Robin, Jerusha, Ann, and a few other adults while we passed around ideas and their old stories from their times at the Renaissance Fair. Robin, Jerusha, Ann, and I became a tight-knit group that will hopefully continue throughout the years. I love and thank each of them from the bottom of my heart for their support and efforts to help me grow as a person.
I’ve barely been here very long and I’m already feeling so welcome and trusted. Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect when I first asked to help out, but I figured it was just being asked to do a little bit more than what I usually did as one of the older kids. And sure enough, for the most part, it was. I took three or four kids on trips to the actor bathroom whenever one kid needed to go. I helped anyone who needed help with buttons and laces when putting on costumes. I rehearsed our Mother Goose stage show and Toy Parade with the kids. Although, there were a few important changes that really got me excited.
First off, one of the stage directors told us to change the Mother Goose Show into something that would tell the kids what to expect around the fair. Basically, she wanted us to perform an infomercial. So Robin wrote a rough draft of the script and asked one of the assistant directors/parents, Jerusha, and I to edit the script for her. We edited it enough for the first performance and then I learned to watch the audience’s reactions and tweaked it further. Honestly, since we were forced to limit it to being an infomercial, it was obviously not going to hold children’s attention that well. Thank goodness the lady who asked us to do that realized it and told us we didn’t have to do it anymore.
Going back to an earlier point of my job that didn’t change; another great skill I acquired besides scripting is an important tool any wannabe-parent would need under their belt: the art of discipline. Dicken’s Fair has put me through many awkward obstacles in my time here: getting dressed in front of other, helping kids wipe their bottoms, etc. Although one that wasn’t as awkward as some of these but still barely in there was putting Robin’s kid through the torture of a timeout. Thankfully, both Robin herself and good friend of mine named Caitlyn helped me through. Caitlyn stayed with me so I wouldn’t be alone and Robin taught me a cool tip for how long I should let a timeout be. She told me to just let the disciplined kid’s age be the number of minutes we keep them “locked up” for, and I’m definitely going to keep that rule in my pocket for if I’m ever lucky enough to be a mother.
Although the biggest change-that I have a feeling is permanent-is being brought into the adult’s inner circle a little more. Whenever Robin held an important meeting with adults about rules and such; I was right next to her, sharing my feedback and opinions as they listened and gave their own. I would also hang out with Robin, Jerusha, Ann, and a few other adults while we passed around ideas and their old stories from their times at the Renaissance Fair. Robin, Jerusha, Ann, and I became a tight-knit group that will hopefully continue throughout the years. I love and thank each of them from the bottom of my heart for their support and efforts to help me grow as a person.