Painting meets personality

What happens when a writer trades pen for paintbrush?

There’s a pathetic little poppy sitting in the garden I once tended with more care. I began wishing one morning that I’d done more to keep it blooming. I wanted to study every detail of its petals and stems, hoping it’d help me “get it right” during a painting party I was attending later that day.

I got to pondering the potential for painting to reveal one’s personality when first invited to the affair. Agreeing to paint with a group of peers meant several things. At the very least, they’d see my work. Worse still, they might judge it. Or me. It wouldn’t be perfect. And that felt intolerable.

Still I agreed — though saying “yes” seemed a monumental act of courage. Learning to let go is a good thing. I know this in theory, but that doesn’t make it any easier. I arrived late, after a morning appointment, to find most were about halfway through their painting.

I dived in, chatting nervously while attempting to allay my own insecurities. My level of painting prowess lies somewhere between color by numbers and just let ‘er rip. Once I had paintbrush in hand, my concerns about making a masterful finished product melted away.

Instead I enjoyed the feeling of drawing my brush across the canvas, of capturing new bits of color off the paper plate that served as my palette. I loved the movement, and began to remember earlier experiences, like dancing and speed skating, that elicited similar emotions.

Still, I was disappointed with the finished product — which I decided to call “Patriotic Poppies.” Too much blue, Too much white. I vowed to “fix it” once I got home. But my daughter Jennifer got ahold of it first — approaching me one morning with painting in hand.

She noticed the things I liked best about the work. Paint applied thickly. A streak of red through the yellow sunset. I shared that painting the poppies had reminded me of her, because they’ve always been one of her favorite flowers and they’re plentiful in parts of Northern California we’ve traveled together.

Jennifer smiled when I gave her the painting, sharing that she’d been planning to ask me whether she could have it after I died. “I’m glad I don’t have to wait,” she told me. Me too.

— Lynn

Note: Click here to explore Carrie Curran Art Studios, where all sorts of art is in bloom

Coming up: Dance by the dozen

Choosing a theater camp

Katie Czajkowski (13) of Glendale in Tracy Turnblad mode during a recent Hairspray summer camp at Childsplay

Valley teen Katie Czajkowski knows a lot about going to theater camp. She just completed her third summer of theater camps with Childsplay in Tempe and her first summer of theater camp at Phoenix Theatre, where she favors one week camps with a musical theater theme.

Think “Into the Woods,” “You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown,” “Grease,”  “Guys and Dolls” and more.

I saw Czajkowski perform recently and was struck by not only her acting, but her vocals as well — though she’s only recently started acting and vocal training with a Valley studio called Voices.

Czajkowski tells me she hopes to perform for a living one day, and I haven’t any doubt she’s got what it takes. Knowing that registration is already open for several fall theater camps, I decided to ask her for tips on choosing a theater camp.

Phoenix Theatre summer camp performers (Photo by Sara Chambers)

Seems her mom Deb (who shared the first photo above) does a lot of the initial research, but that they make decisions together about which camps to choose. Katie’s a big fan of musical theater so she often chooses camps related to her favorite shows. Hence her “Tracy Turnblad” performance during a summer “Hairspray” camp at Childsplay.

Phoenix Theatre summer campers (Photo by Sara Chambers)

Consider practical elements, like scheduling, suggests Czajkowski — but also consider the background and attitude of teachers doing the camps. Not everyone loves working with kids, she says, and the best teachers are those who are working theater professionals.

Czajkowski shared that her summer camp teachers were professional, organized and knowledgable and that they were able to teach a great deal of material in a short period of time while staying upbeat. The best teachers make things fun and interesting, she says.

Sometimes word of mouth or trial-and-error is helpful in figuring out which theater programs offer that perfect mix of passion and professionalism. But many theater companies note teacher credentials online so you can assess their experience with theater and with youth.

Phoenix Theater summer campers on stage (Photo by Sara Chambers)

It’s nice to work with different teachers, says Czajkowski, because every director is different. She’s learning her way around Valley theater by studying with theater professionals and enjoying live theater performance.

Czajkowski says she enjoys venues like ASU Gammage, Arizona Broadway Theatre and Broadway Palm Theatre — where she’s been seeing shows with her mom since the age of five. Her favorite musicals include “Phantom of the Opera,” “Wicked,” and “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.”

As I’m preparing for my own daughter Lizabeth to move to NYC for college theater studies, it’s great to know that other mothers and daughters are enjoying Broadway works together here in the Valley.

Rehearsal for a Childsplay Academy performance (Photo courtesy of Childsplay)

Theater camps have been good to Lizabeth through the years — fostering creativity, problem-solving, teamwork and much more. Not everyone who attends theater camp chooses to train or work in the theater, but everyone experiences a way of being in the world that stays with them for a lifetime.

— Lynn

Note: Many theater camps fill quickly, so now is the time to research fall options at local performing arts venues, acting/music/dance studios and theater companies. You’ll find additional resources in the September “performing arts” issue of Raising Arizona Kids magazine.

Coming up: More teens share their theater experiences, Fun finds in Flagstaff, From acting to anatomy?

Mom/daughter movie night

I don’t get to see my oldest daugher, Jennifer, as often as I’d like now that she’s moved to campus housing at ASU. But yesterday I picked up Jenn, and her giant suitcase of laundry, so she could enjoy the weekend back here at the ranch.

The craftiest of our three kids, Jennifer always comes home with a whole bunch of show and tell type objects — things she’s made, purchased from various artists or found at local thrift shops. (Her Christmas wish list, she tells me, has just a single item: an awl, for making holes in various materials.)

Thursday night’s offerings included an old copy of “The Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law.” Seems she’d ripped out the final page, a list of proofreaders’ marks and their usages, and turned it into a work of art. You’ve gotta love a girl who couples grammar with crafting.

Earlier that evening, we’d attended an advance screening of the movie “The Tourist” together at Harkins Theatre Fashion Square 7 at Scottsdale Fashion Square — then used a final bit of time before the stores closed to gather a few essentials. A Build-a-Bear outfit for one of her prized stuffed animals, and two boxes of Paradise Bakery miniature cookies.

We discussed the movie on the way home — and Jennifer shared her dismay that so many people in the film seemed to spend so much of their time turning heads, usually when Angelina Jolie’s character, Elise, entered the room. I wasn’t all that bothered by it, but it did seem her role was reduced in some ways to a sort of three-dimensional paper doll with a very expensive set of paper dresses.

I’m always challenged when expected to think of movie “stars” as the people they are portraying. Jodie Foster makes everything believable — but some other actors, not so much. Yet Johnny Depp loses all his delicious idiosyncracies when he steps into the role of American math teacher Frank.

It’s harder to forget that Elise is Angelina Jolie — due in large measure to the ever-fresh peachy lip gloss that’s there whether she’s powering a getaway boat in the canals of Venice or sleeping alone in a luxury hotel suite. I prefer Jolie in meatier fare — such as “The Changeling.”

Yet Thursday night’s audience seemed to adore this simple cat and mouse affair. There was plenty of laughter, and some audible gasps, as the plot took various twists and turns.

Of course, any movie seems better for being set in stunning European locations — and there’s the fun of trying to translate all that French with only a few years of high school language study more than just a couple of years ago. Jennifer is the family’s best French speaker, so she had the most fun with this aspect of the adventure.

“The Tourist” has so far failed to wow most reviewers, but I actually found the movie quite smart and funny (unlike the 2008 movie “Smart People” which wanted us to believe that calling a dandelion a rose makes it a rose).

“The Tourist” is a sort of James Bond meets “39 Steps.” There are safes to crack, ropes to knot just so and mysterious rendezvous by train and other means. I quite enjoyed the dialogue, much of which is humorous in a way best appreciated by wordsmiths (like those whose children make art from AP style guides).

I also enjoyed the movie’s score — except for the one scene that features vocal performance rather than instrumental fare. It’s over the top, and turns the vibe from passionate to phony. Perhaps I simply failed to appreciate an intended parody of sorts.

In any event, we enjoyed the film from start to finish (despite the creepiness factor of one character who seemed a sort of Hannibal Lecter minus a mask and a fork). It makes for a fun mom/daughter outing, date night or evening with friends — especially when viewed so close to the cookie counter.

— Lynn

Note: Click here to learn more about “The Tourist”

Coming up: Ballet takes a dark turn in “Black Swan”