Even though the full moon is ramping up the energy of this pre-Halloween week, it’s still one of my favorite times of the year. There’s great anticipation for the carnival, along with Halloween itself the next day. I’ve always loved Halloween, going all the way back to my childhood when we were allowed to roam freely for hours collecting candy in our small Nebraska town. It’s also the holiday that, in my mind, officially marks the end of summer and the beginning of autumn and eventually the winter holidays.
I like carnival week because it’s a culmination of hard work many people have put in for several months, most of them behind the scenes. It’s gratifying to see it all come together for a delightful event for the kids. The carnival draws so many of our alumni families and it makes me happy to see them and know they still care about the Seed. It’s fun to see the kids all excited about their costumes, as well as their enthusiasm for winning cakes in the cake walk and prizes from the game booths.
What gives me the greatest joy during this time around Halloween is performing with the Mystery Theater Players. This year we offer Creepy Carrots, based on the book by Aaron Reynolds and Peter Brown. It’s a tale well known around the Seed, especially in the PreK since they read it every time they have carrots for snack. Our process begins in late September as we select the story and then begin writing our script. Our final version is draft six. Once the script is set, we start rehearsing twice a week until the last week (right now) when we rehearse four out of five nights till we have it down. It’s an act of love for theater and our audiences, as well as for the Seed faculty fund which receives all the proceeds.
The Mystery Theater has a long history, dating back to the 1980s and the earliest Seed carnival days. If you’d like more history on the carnival and the Mystery Theater, check out these links from the archive:
https://www.awakeningseedschool.org/2011/10/its-all-a-mystery/
https://www.awakeningseedschool.org/2013/10/primed-for-halloween/
https://www.awakeningseedschool.org/2014/10/carnivals-of-halloweens-past/
Whether it’s your first Seed carnival or if you’re a veteran, we hope you’ll enjoy the event to the fullest. Thanks ahead of time to all APA coordinators, staff, and volunteer parents for organizing, setting up, baking, decorating, promoting, and caring enough about the Seed to put forth this level of effort. The Seed is what it is in large part because of all of you.
Creepy Carrots has a Cool Cast of Characters!