31 July, 2005

a magical starry night of 50 kids

the summer theater program at SOTA that Isa was enrolled in culminated the season this past friday night with a production of "how to succeed in business without really trying". the program was comprised of 50 kids, ages 9-14. it was a huge production, and an incredibly impressive and hilarious show. the leads had amazing voices and terrific sense of comic timing. they performed 2 full shows, one after another, at 3pm and then at 6pm. all the kids were absolutely wonderful, they performed their hearts out and each show ended with standing ovations. i couldn't believe how extremely talented and hard working they all were. Isa was one of the lead dancers, and i couldn't get over how well she performed. i didn't recognize her on stage, she was so confident, positively glowed, and danced so well (for a long time it seemed she had 2 left feet and couldn't carry a tune). she looked a natural onstage, and was like a young fosse dancer in the making (i'm sure rpaul would appreciate that).

at the end of the long day, when we greeted isa with flowers, hugs and kisses, i was surprised when she started crying, sobbing in fact. i realized the experience was so overwhelming for her. her first show, wherein she worked so hard for 5 weeks straight, making friendships with the other kids, then the performance, her first ever of this kind, wherein she put in so much of herself. she went through a tremendous change, discovering so much about herself and her abilities. many performers and artists know that, when you believe in what you're doing, you go through a journey of self discovery during a production. you invest so much of yourself, your heart and soul. the performance is the result of all those hours of work, and, when done right, the music, the lights, the other performers, all come together and create magic. and that is certainly what happened on stage, both shows.

i'm immensely proud of isa. she certainly is blossoming before my very eyes. i'm also so happy for her, to have experienced something amazing like that. no words can describe how a parent feels witnessing their child discover the joy of finding themselves. it was certainly a magical night in that theater.

"oh aren't you proud to be
in that fraternity,
the great big brotherhood of man...."