Support the power of storytelling.
A message from Executive Director Don Wright
November 2023Dear friends,Storytelling is innate to the human experience. It’s pervasive in our daily lives as we share with each other all the interesting details and events of our daily experience; embellishing, polishing, adding humor and perspective. With children, who live so close to their imagination and for whom every story is an exploration into a new world, they take on added importance. Every story adds another layer to their development of their perception of self as an object in the world. They see themselves more as a character in a larger world beyond the boundaries of home, school, and neighborhood. Sharing a story helps them learn to articulate the details of a situation or event, identify the conflict or problem, understand what worked or didn’t in resolving it, and understand their role.While participating in the theater arts, children get an even broader experience of storytelling. Starting with an audition, then a role and a script, they then take this fictional character and shape it, put it in context in an invented community and setting, allow their ensemble and production artists to hold a mirror up to their discovery via formal ‘notes’ and incidental feedback and then express it out to the audience, where they then get a true response. As they evolve through adolescence and teen years their capacity for expression grows, they comprehend that theater is an art form that most fully reflects the world around them, and they engage more deeply in performances, connecting in an even more real way with an audience.It’s powerful stuff, and alongside the important sense of belonging that they get from being part of an ensemble, it challenges their perceptions of what motivates us as humans, sharpens their critical thinking skills and melds their cerebral intelligence and visceral understanding.Very Merry started with a passion for storytelling and through the years has celebrated the resulting gift and accomplishments of all children. Your tax deductible annual appeal contribution provides essential support to our organization ensuring “Every Child Takes Center Stage” and experiences the magic of storytelling.
Thank you, as always, for being part of our family and for helping us sustain this work.Best, Don