Broadway Players of FHS present ‘All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten’

By Vicki Tillis, Ledger lifestyles editor

The Broadway Players of FHS's presentation of 'All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten” will be at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and again at 2 p.m. Sunday in the Fairfield High School Auditorium.

The musical comedy is based on Robert Fulghum's book of the same title and features a series of 21 vignettes and musical numbers depicting life's journey from kindergarten through adulthood and the lessons learned along the way.

Of those 21 little stories and songs, everyone will find at least one that they especially enjoy or relate to. For me, it was 'Cinderella,” 'Stuff in the Sink,” 'Spider,” 'Fathers and Sons,” and 'Christmas and Valentine's Day.”

In 'Cinderella,” I loved that the kindergarten teacher allowed a little boy - Norman, 'a kid who was somehow different … in the way he looked at things … teased a lot by his classmates, causing him to live on the fringe of kindergarten society” - to cast himself as and create a role for a barking, dancing pig in the class production of the fairy tale. His creativeness stole the show and garnished accolades for himself, his classmates and their teacher.

'Stuff in the Sink” features a mom and her son who says 'One of the very few reasons I have any respect for my mother at all is because she reaches into the sink with her bare hands - BARE HANDS - and picks up that lethal gunk and drops it into the garbage. To top that, I saw her reach into the wet garbage bag and fish around in there looking for a lost teaspoon BAREHANDED - a kind of unbelievable courage. She found the spoon in a clump of coffee grounds mixed with chicken fat and scrambled eggs. I almost passed out when she gave it to me to wash. Once, in French class, we learned the word ‘ordure' and when the teacher told me it meant ‘unspeakable filth,' I knew exactly what she was talking about. I see it every night. In the bottom of the sink.

'That night at dishwashing time, I told my mother ‘we have ordure in our sink.' Well, she gave me her ‘my-child-the-idiot' look and explained that the dinner I had just eaten was at that very moment in my stomach, in just about the same condition, ROTTING!!! No matter what my mother thinks, I know that the stuff in the sink strainer is lethal and septic. It will give you leprosy or something worse. If you should ever accidentally touch it, you must never touch any other part of your body with your fingers until you have scalded and soaped and rinsed your hands. Even worse, I know that the ‘stuff' can congeal and mush up and mutate into some living thing that can crawl out of the sink during the night and get loose in the house.” Yeah, what mom hasn't impressed her kid with her magic power to overcome all kinds of nastiness? Mom is the one who has to do all kinds of things to accomplish what has to be done.

In 'Spider,” a successful, competent young woman goes to pieces when she encounters a spider outside her door. It's great because not only do we get to see the encounter from the woman's point of view, but also from the spider's, and it's in slow motion! Now, really, whose parents have not said, 'That tiny spider is more scared of you than you are of it” when an unexpected eight-legged arachnid shows up in your personal space?

'Fathers and Sons” is a look at the relationship between a father and son. At times - like when the 3-year-old throws a tantrum in the grocery store - the father wants to run away. At others, the teenage son declares his hatred of his father and wants to run away. But as they age, they create a relationship symbolized by their jogging: 'the son does not run ahead, but runs alongside his father at his father's pace. They love each other a lot. You can see that. They have been through a lot together. So they work to take care of their love.”

'There will be times when they will be mad at each other again.

'And there will be times when they love each other.”

'And one of their FAVORITE stories will always be … ‘Once upon a time in a supermarket!”

I mean, who has not wanted to run away from their family at one time or another? I know I have. And I am so glad my kids have now realized that I am not as dumb as they think I am.

'Christmas and Valentine's Day” is about an elderly couple. The husband, suffering from dementia, often thinks it is Christmas. His wife explains how their daughters play along, and come to visit with gifts and to make cookies, and it's more like Father's Day than Christmas. It is endearing how the family gathers to celebrate their father and his love.

Betsie Wotherspoon, director of the play, said 'All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten” was written for a cast of five, but she has made it work for a cast of 15.

Of those 15 actors, six of whom double as vocalists. Soloists are: Amber Burroughs, Dallas Carlson, Harper Fiske, Aven Gottshall, River Norwood, and Alyson Reid. Other cast members are: Izzy Ferrell, Gerda Fiske, Sophia Fritz, Samara McLain, Mira Pappin, Kaylee Pringle, Nicole Sutherland, Wyatt Whitham, and Christina Winland.

Crew members include Abigail Ford, JJ Funkhouser, Abyni Garner, Blair Grunwald, Katie McLain, Claire Pettit, Ella Phillips and Gabriel Zimmer.

School district staff members John Grunwald and Jim Edgeton volunteer as faculty tech supervisors, Fred Hucke rehearses with the vocalists and Noel Wotherspoon is assistant director.

Laurie Noll, superintendent of the school district, will artistically and dramatically enhance the Sunday afternoon performance through sign language.

All tickets are $5 for general admission. Admission is free with an activities pass. Tickets will be available at the auditorium box office before each performance.

In addition to enjoying a great performance by the students, attendees will have an opportunity to put a book into each Fairfield kindergartner's hands.

Wotherspoon explained 'All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten” will be adjudicated by the Iowa High School Musical Theatre Awards. The organization promotes the education of students in all areas of theatre and celebrates the achievements of Iowa students in high school musical theatre. The Broadway players cast and crew are participating in the community action portion of IHSMTA by gathering new and gently used books which interest kindergarten students. They also will collect cash donations to purchase books for the children in the community. Their goal is to give every Fairfield kindergartner the opportunity to choose a book to own and take home. Extra books will be donated to Fairfield kindergarten class libraries.

Donations of books or cash can be dropped off at the Fairfield High School office or at one of the performances.

Stage managers Abyni Garner, Ella Phillips and Claire Pettit will be in the lobby before and after the shows to accept donations.

Those who contribute cash will receive a receipt for tax purposes.