It’s been a long time since we’ve updated here at Daytime Moon, but don’t think that it’s because we haven’t been busy!!!
The last time I updated this blog, we were about halfway through our
fall program. Suffice it to say, it was an incredible journey and the
final performance was AMAZING! As you’ve gathered from our other posts
and all of the great pictures (there are more to come, I promise!) the
show was about superheroes. In particular, Mr. Sun (whose superpower is
spreading joy) The Ice Knight (who freezes his enemies) Spider Sean (who
saves the world with his webs) and Jake Cash Skaggs (the best mandolin
player in the world) uniting their forces to save the world from mean
people. Because, in short, kindness is contagious. Our boys were
incredible. The show, in a professional theatre right in the heart of
Times Square, was funny, heartwarming, adorable, and moving–everything
you hope the theatre will be. And we’ve missed all of the boys a great
deal since December.
But what’s happened since, you ask? Well. Where to start?
Soon after the final performance of our fall program, we finalized a
contract with the New York Center for Autism Charter School to bring
Daytime Moon Creations into the school for a group of their students.
This is a great opportunity for us–a really incredible school for
children on the spectrum devoted to enriching the lives of their
children with recreational programming. It was the pilot of our in
school programming, something that we hope will be a huge part of what
Daytime Moon offers. The plan was to expand our program to ten weeks,
double our enrollment, and perform in the middle of April.
We began in February, and the students at the charter school are
great. It’s been a totally different experience from our fall program.
For one, our students are much younger, aged 6-11, and they all knew
each other at the beginning, unlike in the fall where enrollment was
much more random. The Daytime Moon program is a part of their school
day, so we are much more a part of the “curriculum” than we were in the
fall. It’s been both an exciting challenge and a lot of fun for us. Just
like in the fall, we’ve been gifted with exceptional participants. Our
group is vibrant, diverse, and full of joy, and we’ve had a blast
working with them. We also have brought on a wonderful intern from the
Cooke Center Academy, a special education high school in the West
Village, who has assisted in the scriptwriting and directing of our
final production.
The show (as would have it when you take close to 5 months to write
an update) is coming up soon. Tomorrow soon. “The Best Show Ever,”
written by playwright Meredith Hackman and our incredible intern Nagisa,
is about a group of rock stars who come to Madison Square Garden to
perform in a group concert. When the bands arrive, though, they are
informed that because of an incoming storm there will only be enough
time for one band. Faced with the daunting task of choosing who should
be showcased, the bands each perform. Who will get the headline spot? No
one knows. But my hunch is that we’ll all realize that we’re so much
better when we all put our talents together. Featuring original music by
Matt Mazur, “The Best Show Ever” is performing tomorrow after at the
charter school. Stay tuned for photos and video!
What else has been going on? Well, we’re excited to be premiering two
amazing videos made about our organization, both of which are available
for viewing on our “Watch Our Videos” page. The first, made by NYU
student Sedera Ranaivoarinosy, is a journalism project profiling the
story of Daytime Moons’ beginnings and the unique offerings available in
our programs. The second, a commissioned promotional video made by
filmmaker Benjamin Sidoti, is a great look at Daytime Moon featuring
interviews with our staff, a parent, and a number of our actors, as well
as footage from our programs and the final show. In the words of our
actor, Teddy, it’s “great stuff, really great stuff.”
And on the horizon? Well we’re trying to enjoy the present, getting
VERY excited about tomorrow, and planning for this summer. I promise it
won’t be another five months before you hear from me, so stay tuned.
We’ve got lots of fun plans up our sleeve!
And to tide you over, here are some pictures:
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| Natalie and I |
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| Bit helping the group learn their lines |
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| Shachi and Joseph |
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| The group hard at work |
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| Meredith and Nagisa |
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| Sydney and Harris |
See you tomorrow!
Jenna
