How KVTA Made Me Examine My Complicated Relationship With My Father

Familial relationships are often the subject of works of literature, as this is the first and often strongest relationship that we all know. Relationships with our mother and father figures are often the strongest of all. This season, KVTA has not only one but two production whose central theme is the relationship of father and child. Thanks for the material, KVTA board! You should be excited because both of these shows are going to be fantastic. I'm excited because I can put my 11th grade literary skills to use to compare how each show handles this relationship, thank you Mrs. Jensen. Big Fish focuses on the relationship between father and adult child. This production takes place in the spring of 2026, so I'll talk more about that show then. For now, let's focus on the father and young child relationship in My Son Pinocchio Jr., directed by Pat Ward.

So I asked many of the actors and actresses in this show a simple question: Can you tell me something nice that your father or father figure does for you? After having spoken to children before, I wasn't surprised when I was answered mostly with blank stares. But after they took a moment, or a few, to think, they almost universally smiled and were able to give me a great memory.

"He cared for me when he didn't have to."-Jordyn Clark.

The story of Pinocchio is based on a children's book between 1881 and 1883 in Italy. This version follows suit with many classic fairy tales with anthropomorphized animals, obvious moral lessons, and horrible injuries and outcomes. Although published in a serialized version, the basics of the story are very similar to the Disney version from 1940 that I'm sure you're familiar with.

In the many different versions of the Pinocchio story, Geppetto takes on many different roles. He is often simply a down-on-his-luck puppeteer who takes the opportunity presented to him to improve his lot in life. However, the Disney version, and My Son Pinocchio, Jr., he is a lonely adult, longing for a son of his own. I think that this is the version of Geppetto that makes us all a bit more nostalgic.

"He would accompany me on the piano while I sang."-Jeanne Benson

As the title may have led you to believe, I hope you don't mind if I share a personal story (or two) in this series of posts. I think that everyone has at least one memory of a father figure that is deeply rooted in music. Surely you can conjure an image of a father making his son listen to his old records while the son tries desperately to sneak away! I am old enough that my father was a child of the 60s and was heavily into the music of that era. He, of course, listened to the popular rock music of that time, and after he moved to the Kankakee area, he even got into the modern country of the 90s and 00s. But what he really loved were the singer-songwriters. He would listen to records, and later CDs, of Elton John, Billy Joel, Neil Young, Paul Simon, Gordon Lightfoot, and Harry Chapin. (I'm sure I would hear about it from someone if I wrote about fathers and sons and didn't mention Harry Chapin). I remember all of these songwriters fondly, and can still remember the words to a lot of their songs. But my memory of my father and music starts and ends with Jim Croce. Although my father is not a musician by a long shot, I think that he saw himself in the story of Jim Croce. His life is spectacularly interesting (I definitely encourage you to read about him) and his personal struggles are evident in all of his songs. When my father died, my family discussed what songs to play at his memorial. My sisters listed song after song that they enjoyed listening to with him, but I had only one that I insisted upon: Jim Croce's Time in a Bottle. The emotional narrative of this song exemplifies the American folk/singer-songwriter fashion of storytelling.

All that being said, I was surprised when I listened to the music in this production. It seems to me that these songs are heavily influenced by this style of musical composition. There are certainly the song and dance numbers involving the entire cast, but what stuck out were the character interactions portrayed through song. The songs also come in rapid fire succession, get to the point, and move on with the narrative. The narrative base of each song surprises as the characters singing drives the plot forward, much like the sometimes simple, but enjoyable, melodies do in American folk music.

"He taught me to cook!"-Kayla James

Dad's and important men in these children's lives, here is what your children like about you:

• He helped me when I fell off my scooter.

• He will always drop everything to help.

• He works hard for our family.

• He thinks he is so funny.

• He left work to help me when I needed him.

• He will get me anything!

• He loves to play sports with me.

• He lets me have so many animals.

• He helps with my chores.

I tried to keep each compliment as general as possible, so even if your child couldn't think of anything, you can claim whichever is your favorite!

"He taught me to shoe horses, to replace my brakes, and to always know that being a girl didn't define what I could do."-Pat Ward.

The relationship between a father and child develops rapidly through youth, but so much more can happen to this relationship even into adulthood. So let's put this conversation on hold for a few months and we'll come back to it during our discussion of Big Fish. In the meantime, fathers and father figures, bring your children to this production, no matter their age. I feel like wisdom about our relationship comes with age, but you would be surprised what they will pick up on and remember. You can see KVTA's production of My Son Pinocchio Jr. at Lincoln Cultural Center on November 22 and 23. We look forward to seeing you there!

It's hard to believe, but Dana James was the cutest little blonde boy at one point. With a full head of hair!