Boy From Oz Question - kids

[nycgal13]

Posted: 12/1/03 at 1:13pm

Taking my extended family to see The Boy From Oz in a couple of weeks. Have one young teen and one pre-teen and am wondering how the suicide of the father is handled in the show. I'd like to talk to the kids about it before hand so they aren't surprised or upset by it.

[A_Boy_From_Oz]

Posted: 12/1/03 at 1:19pm

The suicide of the father isn't shown until the very end of the show. All you see is a shadow of a man puttin a gun to his head, and then you hear the shot. Peter's mother then sings "Don't cry out Loud." That's pretty much it. The suicide is not a huge part of the plot. I'd say that the show is appropriate for teens above the age of 12 or 13.

[TheaterBaby]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 7:02am

I'm 21 and I was a little stunned by the suicide scene. Yes, it was short; but very emotional.
Besides suicide, take into concideration the fact that Homosexuality, Aids, Drinking, Death as a factor of all of these things, and Hugh's tendency to ad-lib are all part of this show.
I wouldn't take anyone under 14 unless they are very mature for their age.

[Auggie27]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 9:54am

14?! Not to be too cynical ... but have you watched TV lately?

I took my 12 1/2 year old, who has grown up seeing lots of theater. He wasn't shocked, just bored outta his mind whenever Hugh wasn't center stage, and sometimes when he was. And he was naturally intrigued that the Dorothy he knows from Wizard of Oz grew up and became that bitter, quirky lady in the red sequined dress. But then, kids of all ages have been intrigued with that particular metamorphosis for decades.

Updated On: 12/2/03 at 09:54 AM

[Horsey!!!]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 10:01am

This show is suitable for ALL ages. Please...it's a Broadway Musical for chrissakes. Kids today are watching teenage girls getting pregnant by their stepfathers on The Jerry Springer show.

[lc1965]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 11:11am

I want to reiterate what TheaterBaby said. This is a mature show w/ mature themes. It's true that kids today are much more sophisticated than kids were 25 years ago, but they're still kids. They may be able "to handle it", but that still begs the question of whether they should be willfully exposed to it. Everyone is different & I encourage you to take your young family members' individuality into consideration. Also, this is a theatre & kids can't just change the channel or walk away if they become uncomfortable. I hope you all have fun regardless of what you choose to do!

[thirdrowcenter]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 12:00pm

There were a few very young children in the audience on Sunday afternoon. I was surprised about how well behaved they were.
At the end of the wonderful show after Hugh gives the contribution to AIDS talk, they auctioned off his tee shirt with DNA on it!! and there was a battle for it, bringing in over 1500.00 so they gave out two each for 1500. Then they auctioned off his towel for 500. and who gives the bid? a three year old boy. Hugh has him come onstage and picks him up and holds him and the audience wants to bid on the little boy!!!!!!! What a great day!!!!

[SueleenGay]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 12:08pm

and who gives the bid? a three year old boy. Hugh has him come onstage and picks him up and holds him and the audience wants to bid on the little boy!!!!!!!

It's a good thing Michael Jackson was not there!

But seriously, I think it is a great idea to have an auction. Is this a regular thing?

[RobbO]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 12:20pm

i don't agree with this, but the "ask edward" feature on broadway.com lists the following about the appropriate age:

What are the appropriate ages for The Boy from Oz?
"Adult language and themes makes this show best for mature high school and college age young people."

i saw the show with two young kids nearby - about 8-10, i would guess and they seemed fine. (of course, i don't know about psychological scarring...) my thought is if the kid is raised in an aware household then seeing two men kiss or discussion of death (if they even realize someone died, since they still see the characters at the end and during the show) won't be a big deal.

[PigletH13]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 1:16pm

FYI, the 3 yr old boy was Hugh's son Oscar.

[Auggie27]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 2:17pm

RobbO's report on Edward had me howling. "Mature high school or college age..." kids would be rolling their eyes at how cornball the entire enterprise is. What's "mature" that adolescents don't know about? It's not even RENT -- which is always packed with kids -- and which has a lot of drugging and cursing in lyrics. Ooooh, in OZ we have the cutting edge use of "bi-coastal" as code for biSEXual! Any kid who's seen 10 minutes of WILL AND GRACE will be waaaay ahead of Liza in ol Peter's tory.

The Peter Allen "character" is very loving and benevolent, the father's death is so brief as to barely register and done in silouette (and is far less upsetting than the parental exits in BAMBI or LION KING, for all you moms n'dads out there. I've been through those deaths -- and because they're prepared for via a well-written script, and don't pop up to inspire an eleven o'clock spot in a life that had none -- they land and DO shake up children.)

I wouldn't shove this show on an 8 year old, but surely a savvy 12 year old -- and not just my precocious, Manhattan-reared kid -- could cope with this PG-13 account of a happy-go-lucky song and dance man who liked quirky homely girls (Liza) and cute but dull boys (Jarod E.)

As Mame says, "Mr. Babcock, knowledge is power!"

Updated On: 12/2/03 at 02:17 PM

[BrdwyThtr]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 5:38pm

I think if the kids are sophisticated, they can handle it.

[TheaterBaby]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 7:39pm

I agree that if the kids are sophisticated, then it's appropriate. I wouldn't bring them just because they're a fan of Hugh Jackman or X-Men or whatever.

My own experience with TV as opposed to Live Theater is that theater is so much more tangable. Sure, I know it's just a story (well, a true story in this case), but it's so much more emotional than something you watch on television. Any smart person (even a child) knows that television shows are edited to appear a certain way. Live theatre (even though it is also scripted) makes everything seem very real for those 2+ hours you are sitting. It's almost as if everything is happening for the first time in front of you, even if it has been performed hundreds of times before. There is no "Take 2" on Broadway.

[thirdrowcenter]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 8:12pm

Piglet was that really his son? The curtain came down and he never returned the child so that would make sense. Also, Hugh said "this is coming out of the child's inheritance."
The little boy had an adorable outfit on with horizontal striped leggings and he had sweet soft curls, really a cutie.
Okay, now who was the woman in the audience he let come onstage and bite his ass? His aunt? lol Updated On: 12/3/03 at 08:12 PM

[Auggie27]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 8:17pm

Actually, Theaterbaby, my own experience with my son is just the opposite of what you opine.

The theater may be built on collective suspension of disbelief on the part of the audience. But we -- kids included -- are always aware that we're in the room with those actors, that they're up on that stage, with scenery flying in/out that looks like, well scenery. And we applaud with great regularity, actors freezing to accommodate us, reminding everyone of the extreme level of artifice. On TV, a 360 degree world is fully created, a reality approximated. I have found myself allowing my son to be exposed to material on the stage that would be questionable on TV for that very reason. If the life ot Peter Allen were to turn up as, say, a movie, I'd never take my son. There would llikely be no level of stylization in the father's suicide or anything else. Yet the chance to see a legit star atthe top of his form/craft perform live teaches a child as much about Hugh Jackman and the challenge of performing as it does about a man named Peter Allen. I feel the trade-off is worth it, and my son left the Imperial thinking about Hugh's taxing work, not Allen.

To be fair to all of your concerns, I must also disclose that I prepared my son in advance re some of the elements.

[liaghatgals]

Posted: 12/2/03 at 10:19pm

I agree that kids now a days are definitly more sophisticated than even kids 10 years ago. There isn't a song lyric, TV show, or movie that doesn't have some questionable elements. Bambi, Finding Nemo. Both deal with parental losses that can be extremely fringtening for young children, and yet they directed precisely towards them! Known in advance, the topic can be discussed openly and honestly. Same thing here. TBFO addresses (albeit briefly)AIDS, bi-sexuality, physical abuse, alcoholism and suicide. This show is not meant to be an indepth drama of these topics, but neither are these issues skirted. All can be discussed with kids and these themes addresses. My only issue with you kids at a live performance has more to do with attention span and bladder size. Kids when fatigued or bored, fidget, making it uncomfortable for patrons in surrounding seats. Likewise, needing to go to the bathroom multiple times during a performance is also disturbing both for patrons and performers. Parents know their children and their personalities and hopefully will make wise and appropriate decisions about their children's attendance at live performances.

And yes, I heard from a Boy From Oz forum member who attended that show, that was Oscar, Hugh's 3 year-old son. He thanked the audience for their help with buying things at the auction.

Sorry about the cross posting. I will get better at figuring out how this forum works!