Broadway World

A FATHER AND DAUGHTER CREATE A LITERACY ADVENTURE FOR KIDS

Last Sunday an old college friend put me to shame. Like most parents, I'm constantly looking for new and challenging projects to share with my children and then not doing any of them because we don't have any time and everyone just wants to watch TV. But my friend, actor and writer Gregory Jones  (who I met in college about three thousand years ago), is not most parents. When Greg's nine-year-old daughter Hannah asked him to write a play with her, he challenged her to come up with a story. She did, and he got to work. A year later, they found themselves at the New York Public Library trying out their new play in front of an audience, and this is where my daughter and I discovered the story of "Boris and the Really Boring Books". 

"Boris" is about a grade-schooler who hates reading but gets trapped in a library one dark and magical night. He's a boy who, like so many kids, spends his time at home in front of a screen: TV, computer, Gameboy, cell phone, you name it. To actually pick up a dusty old book and, like, read it is so boring. But one day, when Boris gets trapped in the library, a storm knocks out the electricity and the books come to life! Forced to face his demons, Boris must make peace with the written word before it's too late. 

The hour-long play explores early childhood literacy in a fresh and entertaining way. The presentation my daughter and I saw at the main branch of the NYPL was just a staged reading but it was clear that a little imagination is all that is required to bring the rollicking fantasy elements of "Boris" to life. And that is indeed in keeping with the play's theme: Imagination brings words to life. When you watch "Boris and the Really Boring Books", the actor and audience work together to create the magic. 

My daughter responded to the nine-year-old co-author's perspective, and I identified with the theme of screen time vs. reading time in a society overflowing with flashy alternatives to reading a book. 

I'm hoping that we will be able to see a full production of "Boris and the Really Boring Books" at some point in the very near future, but in the meantime I wanted to share this father-daughter tale with you. My friend Greg has inspired me, and as soon as my daughter and I are done with this season of "American Idol", I PROMISE we will get to work on writing something together, too.

For more information on "Boris and the Really Boring Books", check out http://www.gregorycjones.com/writing/bio/boris-and-really-boring-books.