A Broadway Books First Class Visit From Christine Pedi

Making silly faces with Christine "Lady of 1,000 voices" Pedi

Christine Pedi dwells in a land heretofore uncharted in the short history of my literacy and Arts program - she accepted a face-to-face invitation to visit my classroom without knowing anything about me. To my knowledge, there were no mentions or words of support from others who've participated. This tactic of cold calling previously bombed with the other performers I've approached - Sarah Jessica Parker, Cherry Jones, Marlee Matlin, and Matthew Broderick - but, I stand undeterred for the greater good. The Divine Ms. P. proves tenacity pays off!

In early October 2018 I saw Christine perform in NEWSical the Musical on Theatre Row. I've long admired her work, but this was the first time I saw her live and in person.

Christine holds a special place in my heart because the last memory I have of my dear friend, James, was giggling over Christine's parody of Telephone (over the telephone! James was watching in New York and I was watching simultaneously in Florida). In the video, Christine switches the roles of Lady Gaga and Beyonce with Liza Minelli and Carol Channing. It was just the inspired silliness James enjoyed and although he sadly and unexpectedly passed soon after, his laughter that day is what I remember. Art lifts us, heals us, and brings us together.

Christine's energy, irreverence, and humor were all on full display as I watched her on stage. After the show I asked her about visiting my classroom to read and she was immediately on board. It turns out she was meeting with popular - and prolific - children's book author Tomie dePaola in the coming days, so the timing of my request was serendipitous. She suggested Tomie's book Oliver Button is a Sissy, which is a beautiful story about an artistic little boy "who won't give up on the dreams that make him unique".

Christine Pedi reads OH, THE PLACES YOU'LL GO! by Dr. Seuss

Christine also suggested her all-time favorite children's book Oh, the Places You'll Go! by Dr. Seuss. This classic picture book with its sage life advice has many, many fans - including former Broadway Books First Class guest artist Michael Urie, who also places it at the top of his favorites list. Ultimately, we decided on the latter choice (although I believe Oliver Button is a fantastic choice for the program).

I wondered, "Would she read the book using the warm, motherly voice of Julie Andrews or Angela Lansbury?" I could only hope!

Christine is known as "The lady of 1,000 voices" due to her incredible ability to step into character as Ethel Merman, Patti LuPone, Bernadette Peters and other well-known divas. This was first showcased in the legendary Off-Broadway revue Forbidden Broadway (and later in Forbidden Hollywood).

In preparation for her visit I showed the children Christine's Hello Dolly auditions video (I stopped it before "Patti LuPone" dropped the F bomb). As we watched I realized we were laughing for different reasons. I was chuckling because of Christine's spot-on interpretations of each performer. The children were laughing because she was wearing funny wigs, talking in different voices, and being silly. They were unfamiliar with Liza, Bernadette, Patti, etc. Although they did know Oprah and remarked afterwards that she was their favorite.

I also thought about the fact that some of the children are hard of hearing. How could we maximize the impact of the various impersonations for them? It turns out that augmentative technology, visuals, and an offer to feel her throat as she spoke did the trick. When the children asked her to do a voice, she entertained them Angela Lansbury as Mrs. Potts from Beauty and the Beast and with various character voices, such as a witch, a little baby, a toothless old man, a snake, and a chicken. She told us that in order to do character voices she thinks about the energy of the person or the animal. They responded with their own versions including a heart girl, a frog, and an Italian-accented Mario. That's a lot of frenetic energy pulsing through a classroom!

Christine as Holly Blue Agate on STEVEN UNIVERSE

A voice the children were familiar with was Holly Blue Agate on the popular animated show Steven Universe. We took a moment to watch a clip from the hit Cartoon Network program, which was a good idea. It quieted all of the voices and led into Christine's other work. After all, she is much more than those myriad voices.

She has performed in three Broadway shows; Little Me, Talk Radio, and Chicago. During our Q&A she told us that Chicago was her favorite because, "It has been running for 22 years. It has some of the best music I've ever heard in my life. And it's funny and it's intelligent at the same time. That's why I like the Dr. Seuss book because it's very fun and it's joyful and it's colorful, but it's very smart. And I like things that can do both." She told us she saw the show 16 times! This meant she was in it for two weeks before she performed the show more than she saw the show. To which a child stood up and asked,

"Was Broadway your passion?"

I loved the essence of this impromptu question because it showed a depth of understanding about what drives performers like Christine. There is a calling that cannot be ignored. It is thrilling to me that the students are gaining an understanding of this and beginning to think about their own path in life. As Joseph Campbell stated, it is important to follow your bliss.

Students ask questions about Christine's many voices and her life in the theatre

It seems that the question also brought us back full circle to the overarching lesson of the book she just read. One that tells us the path of life isn't always easy, but the path is ours and with determination we will get through.

You have brains in your head.

You have feet in your shoes.

You can steer yourself

any direction you choose.

You're on your own. And you know what you know.

And YOU are the guy who'll decide where to go.

And will you succeed?

Yes! You will, indeed!

(98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.)

KID, YOU'LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!

Christine signs a book for this very grateful birthday unicorn

*You can learn more about the fabulous Christine Pedi by clicking here.

**Photo credit: Eileen Lograno and Yours Truly.

A Broadway Books First Class Visit From Oneika Phillips

Broadway Books First Class guest artist Oneika Phillips has an indomitable spirit. Her energy and light heralded her arrival and had every head turning when she entered the classroom. From the start we all knew this was going to be an inspiring visit. How can anyone resist Oneika's infectious smile and genuine, loving spirit?

Oneika joyously greets the children

Hers is a story of challenges, tenacity, belief, and ultimately, triumph. It is one we both had to share with the children because we wanted to teach them that attitude is key.

We may not always have control over our circumstances, but we do have the power to balance light with the darkness. It is a lesson that follows a complicated, emotional path, which begins by facing our fears.

We all get scared sometimes. Terrors can come in irresistible packages with eye-catching ribbons that demand our attention. These nightmares are the kind that elicit bloodcurdling screams followed by a rush of adrenaline and a pounding heart. They can be found in the pages of the cautionary tales shared by former guest artist, Aaron Mark. Fortunately, this type of terror is usually fleeting. We find our way out of the haunted house, we wake up from the nightmare, the movie ends, or, like me, realize the snake your twin brother put on your pillow is fake. We return to functioning as normal within a relatively short period of time.

However, there are other frights. Ones that run deeper. Ones that linger and slowly eat away at our edges. They instill in us a sense of dread, bringing pangs of despair and bouts of worry, They have the ability to cripple us. These are the challenges. They can either crush us or they can show us we are stronger than we realized.

Oneika Phillips guided the children down the uncertain passageway of the quieter fright during her visit. She led our discussion with compassion, giggles, and a few playful dance moves.

Here's Oneika's story and how I discovered the perfect children's book to help tell it.

Oneika in action!

Oneika's dance training, undeniable talent, and smooth moves landed her the plum role of Anita in the 50th Anniversary International Tour of Jerome Robbin's West Side Story. She is an incredibly strong, flexible dancer, but unfortunately not impervious to injury. One day during rehearsal she executed a tricky dance move that left her with a fractured back.

Suddenly, all that she worked for was in jeopardy. Decisions had to be made to heal her body. The physical road back to where she was before all this happened is just one side of the story. There was also the exhausting, frightening, emotional toll. The two walk hand-in-hand, merging at the center of it all to determine how we come through a crisis.

Oneika fought her way back and, not only maintained, but soared! She most recently shined as a denizen of Bikini Bottom in the smash Broadway musical SpongeBob SquarePants.

I struggled to find the perfect book to frame her story the first time she visited in 2016. The book I found - Franklin Goes to the Hospital by Paulette Bourgeois - contained a wonderful message about bravery, but didn't quite capture the nuances of rebuilding one's life after a traumatic incident.

Then, one afternoon I was in the children's book section of New York's famous Strand bookstore with my friend Esther when I came across After the Fall: How Humpty Dumpty Got Back Up Again by Dan Santat. It stopped me in my tracks. Here was a powerful picture book about the debilitating aftermath of an injury. How it can stop us from doing the things we love because we are frightened of getting hurt again. A book about the emotional scars left behind after the body heals. Using simple text and outstanding illustrations Dan Santat gets the reader inside the noggin' of a trepidatious Humpty Dumpty. It is at once instantly relatable and finessed to explore the deeper issues underpinning fear. And children follow Humpty Dumpty through the pain until he ultimately learns to soar (figuratively and literally).

Oneika Phillips reads AFTER THE FALL by Dan Santat

That last bit was the clincher for me. For although I knew that Humpty Dumpty was an egg, I never imagined what was inside him. To realize - through the author's eyes - that he was always an egg on his way to BECOMING something new blew my mind. Did you ever think about that? What a great, new perspective on a nursery rhyme I've known since childhood. It was exactly the children's book we needed to tell Oneika's story.

There comes a time to celebrate moving forward. After facing fear with bravery and navigating through challenges, the relief of pushing past it all deserves an outpouring of happy. We did just that in a language Oneika knows well - dance!

Oneika taught us the Super Sea Star Savior choreography from SpongeBob SquarePants (also referred to as the Sardine Dance). The exuberant cascade of joyful energy swept us all away. Catch a glimpse in the short video below.



In fact, SpongeBob proved to be a very big draw for the students. They couldn't help but share their encyclopedic knowledge of the characters and storylines. Oneika and I were talking about organizing a trip for the children to see her perform in the show - as Jonathan Freeman did with ALADDIN - but the show was forced to close because of scheduled renovations to the historic Palace Theatre.

Punk Fish Fan Art!

Oneika shared some bright, colorful fan art of her character, "Punk Fish", with her neon green mohawk (hard to miss!). She traveled a long path from Grenada to Broadway. Her determination, work ethic, dedication, and pure joy for dance pulled her through the difficult times.

It also taught the children an important lesson about the power of the mind to heal. Optimism and a can-do spirit is never to be underestimated.

Before we said goodbye Oneika spent a little time with each child. She wrote personalized messages in their books (made through donations for this project on DonorsChoose.org. You can follow this link to support future projects).

Be sure to keep an eye out for Oneika's next project. You can bet I'll be there cheering her on!

Oneika fingerspells this child's name. Here she is signing the letter "R"

Baby Monkey, Private Eye

It turns out that rubbing elbows with successful artists at fancy schmancy shindigs has its advantages. On Christmas Day, I met the creators of one of my recent children's book obsessions - Baby Monkey, Private Eye - at Tony Award nominee and drag legend Charles Busch's holiday soiree. His beautiful apartment has been featured in several newspapers, including the prestigious New York Times, and Charles is a host on par with Auntie Mame.

After navigating my way through the throngs of well-known show folk I settled myself on the lush sofa and struck up a conversation with the man in the chair beside me. His name was David Serlin. We bonded over academia (we both have PhDs), issues in deaf education (he works alongside esteemed scholar Carol Padden at UC San Diego), American Sign Language and books.

At one point he mentioned Brian Selznick, whom I immediately recognized when I entered the lipstick red living room. I'd met Brian years before when he visited my classroom while researching Wonderstruck, but I only have a vague recollection of it. David reintroduced us and soon the three of us were chatting about their children's book Baby Monkey, Private Eye.

With Brian Selznick (center) and David Serlin (right)

I bought this book as soon as it came out and it was - and is - a huge hit with my students. Brian's illustrations are exquisite and the story holds a young child's interest. It is a thick chapter book, which is unusual for a book targeting beginning readers. It only has something like 52 words and they appear in a predictable pattern with strong picture support. My preschool students take great pride in reading this book. I enjoy the fact that it has an index, a bibliography, and lots of small details encouraging repeated readings.

David told me he would send me a Baby Monkey, Private Eye poster when he got back to California. It arrived yesterday. He actually sent two - one for my classroom and one for the school library - both signed (see above).

I can't wait to get it framed and proudly display it in my classroom.

Thank you, David!

Putting It Together

Artist Sean Baptist's sketch for the "window" in our dramatic play area

In Sunday in the Park with George the titular character sings about the process of making art.

Bit by bit, putting it together

Piece by piece, only way to make a work of art

Every moment makes a contribution

Every little detail plays a part

Ounce by ounce, putting it together

Small amounts, adding up to make a work of art

Putting it together, that's what counts!

We experienced this first-hand when the children had the notion to create a window in the dramatic play area. They envisioned a landscape with grass, flowers, and trees. A place where magical animals roamed and frolicked in the sunshine.

We shared their vision with our teaching artists from the Children's Museum of the Arts  - Katya, Zuzia, Ian and Sean Baptist - and they helped us execute a plan. Sean began with a quick sketch for the children to approve (see above) and we set to work. It has now morphed into the backdrop for a stop-motion animated movie, which we've already begun.

Here are some photographs of this work in progress.

Sean brings his sketch to life

The painting begins!

The sketch is made permanent with a Sharpie

After mixing colors to find the right shade, children begin to paint the foreground

We learned we should make the scenery closest to us the darkest in order to gain the right perspective

Finishing the hat, er...tree

Figuring out the right color for this tree

Things are coming together. Looking good, kids!

It's a nice view from the kitchen table

Finishing touches and an overlay of apples for the trees

The basics are in place
The sun and clouds will appear in the animated movie

A Broadway Books First Class Visit From Gregory Jbara

Tony Award Winner Gregory Jbara and his young fans

"It's like magic" whispers a small voice as Gregory Jbara reads aloud from Creepy Pair of Underwear by Aaron Reynolds and Peter Brown. The adults in the room, charmed by the child's astonishment, glance at one another with expressions of sweet sentimentally, place palms over hearts and silently mouth "awww".

It IS magical! There is jaw-dropping wonderment for the children in the tenacious pair of green-hued underwear Jasper Rabbit so desperately tries to eradicate. And there is a collective, palpable sense of assurance amongst the watchful adults in the room that childhood innocence endures despite the chaos blaring outside our windows.

We take in the small interactions; one boy joyfully turning to high-five his best friend when the cross-eyed, Frankensteinian underwear inexplicably returns from a sojourn to China, two children holding hands for reassurance as Jasper Rabbit tiptoes into his cavernous bathroom to find "THEY WERE BACK!", and the unbridled, contagious laughter rising from the children whose gaze is fixed in turns on Greg, the ASL interpreter and the book's film noir inspired illustrations.

Photo Credit: Eileen Lograno

The unbridled capacity for enjoyment is evident on the faces of these 4-year-olds

Stepping into this place where magic happens takes some preparation. It also requires the right players. And in that respect we were certainly in good hands with Tony Award Winner Gregory Jbara. In 2015, Greg was the very first performer to "raise his hand" when I asked if any of my Broadway friends would be interested in joining my fledgling program. After his initial visit he wrote in my memory book, "Please include me whenever you feel I might be helpful". And I have! Greg christened Broadway Books Upper Class the following year and came back this school year to usher in Year Four of Broadway Books First Class.

As the first guest artist ever to venture into my classroom Greg's early visit helped me establish the structural framework and flow that other visits would follow. Back then, he read a funny story of veggie haunting entitled Creepy Carrots, so this time he returned to read the sequel. This time he read for two classes - preschool and second grade - of energetic children. This time, he remarked, the program had found its rhythm, flowing seamlessly from one segment to another (with some nice additions, such as sharing childhood photos of each performer). And although things are running smoothly and I've come to feel confident and comfortable in my role as host and facilitator, the unexpected does happen.

Gregory Jbara answers questions alongside ASL interpreter Lynnette Taylor

As Greg was answering questions about the character he played in Billy Elliott the Musical  - click here to listen to his show-stopping tearjerker Deep Into the Ground - we were interrupted by an announcement over the school PA system, "Attention, this is a soft lockdown drill. Please take appropriate action."  My first thought was, "UGH! Why now?! We are in the middle of something!" But, we all diligently swung into action. Lights out, door locked, children and adults huddled in a corner of the room out of sight.

The soft twinkling of the still-illuminated Christmas lights around the bulletin boards provided a comforting glow as we silently waited. The minutes passed and children started signing to one another - an advantage these students have over other school children in similar situations. Then the whispered voices engaging Greg in conversation. For his part, Greg seemed intrigued to take part in this drill and remained good-natured.

I felt bad about taking up his time in this manner, but found consolation in the thought that, perhaps, it could somehow inform his character on Blue Bloods. Greg plays Deputy Commissioner for Public Information (DCPI) Garrett Moore on the hit CBS police procedural drama. In fact, he was in NYC shooting the series and found time in his busy schedule to fit us in. That dedication to freely giving back to the community and the joy it brought to everyone present reminds me that pockets of goodness still exist in these divisive times.

I love this picture! You can see the joy in this child's smile.

Once the lockdown was lifted we returned to the meeting area and Greg complemented the children on how well they responded to the lockdown, my 4-year-old student Jefferson stood up and shyly asked, "Can you sing for us?"

Greg replied, "Can I sing for you? I would love to sing for you."

But first he educated them with little insider information about the audition process.

"As an actor we audition for people to get jobs to be in shows and sometimes when you do a musical they'll say, 'Here's a couple of songs from this musical. Here's the music, go home, learn it and come to the audition and sing these songs from the show that the character you're auditioning for would have to sing if you got the job'. Sometimes, they say, 'Don't worry about the music from the show. Bring us a song that you like to sing or a song that you sing a lot so we can hear something you're comfortable with and know very well. And then we can decide if we want to see you again.'"

Greg sang us a song he's been auditioning with since the very beginning of his career. It's one that he'd learned as a student at Juilliard and sang during his first audition to play Frankenstein's monster in Have I Got a Girl for You! The song - Have You Met Miss Jones? - was followed by Love is Sweeping the Country (his audition song for Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) and Chimp in a Suit.

Gregory Jbara sings CHIMP IN A SUIT from DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS alongside ASL interpreter Dylan Geil 

Once again I observed the watchful, interested faces of the children as they sat soaking in the music, the message, and the moment. Each song followed by hands clapping or raised in the air, waving applause as is typical in Deaf culture. Greg graciously met the requests for more until we shifted gears by presenting him with the gifts we prepared (a Broadway Books First Class t-shirt and a copy of Creepy Pair of Underwear signed by all of the students).

Greg signs copies for each child

I've experienced times in my life when I've tried to hold onto a moment even as I knew it must end, so I realized with sadness that our visit was winding down. Greg provided lasting memories for each child with his visit. Now was the time to make those memories more tangible with a book for each child to take home, signed by Greg.

The thank you cards the children wrote capture their gratitude. "We loved talking to you. We are super lucky you came." "I love the song you sang us and I like your voice. It is amazing!" "Thank you for coming today. I hope you can come again soon!"

The children were delighted when, a couple of weeks later, we received a video message from Greg saying how much he enjoyed reading the cards when he returned home to California. From start to finish, Greg's visit was a wonderful way to begin Year Four of the program.

To learn more about the Broadway Books First Class program, click here.

To make a tax-deductible donation to support literacy by providing books for children, please click here.