FAMILY FUN MONTH: A Week Full of SISTER ACT Fun

In celebration of August being Family Fun Month, the Center is delighted to share stories by some of Orange County’s favorite family bloggers. 

By Lisa Birle of Locale Magazine

Ta'Rea Campbell, Florrie Bagel and Lael van Keuren in Sister Act. 

August can sometimes seem like an awkward buffer month—where you’re still basking in the carefree, fun days of summertime, but scarves and school supplies are back in stores reminding you that the fall season is right around the corner. How do you seize the fleeting summer days with your family before the routines and schedules of the school year hit? Be intentional with your family's time by scheduling activities for every day of the week. My suggestions are themed from Sister Act, which I had the pleasure of seeing this week and runs through August 18th at Segerstrom Center for the Arts. A night out at Segerstrom Center is a great way to spend an evening with your entire family. 

Break down your family activities by creating a theme for each day, like this: 

Make It Monday—Sister Act's heroine, Deloris Van Cartier, would approve of upcycling an old denim jacket with fabulous rhinestones, crafting heavenly halos with wire garland and headbands, or making homemade purple colored foam dough to match Deloris's favorite thigh-high boots! Check out craft ideas on Pinterest—the ultimate resource for finding fun family crafts to do together with your family. 

Time to Read Tuesday—Take your kids to the local library each week. It may seem quiet as a convent, but you’ll be surprised how quickly your kids will lose themselves within the bookshelves as their value of learning grows and they begin to enjoy the habit of reading. When your kids have a question during the week, encourage them to find a book about it at the library. 

Ta'Rea Campbell, Alysha Deslorieux and Trisha Jeffrey in Sister Act. 

What's Cooking Wednesday—Plan a meal together, from the grocery list to the feast. Put on the Sister Act soundtrack and raise your voice as you work together in the kitchen and clean up afterwards. My favorite meal? Breakfast for dinner in my pajamas. Bacon, eggs, and chocolate chip pancakes are just divine! 

Thankful Thursday—Mother Superior would certainly approve of giving thanks through acts of service and praising others. Teach your kids how to write and mail a thank-you note to their coach, clean the neighbor's yard, or bake cookies for a friend. These activities will help them learn to express their gratitude through words and actions. Deloris would agree it's best to spread the love around! 

Family Fun Friday—Enjoy the outdoors while the weather is still warm—head to the park, beach, or water park. Go on a bike ride or have a picnic. In the evening, enjoy a night out at Segerstrom Center for the Arts. Sister Act is a funny and heartfelt production about the importance of sisterhood and family. Make sure your family doesn't miss it as you seize the last moments of summer to create some great family memories together!

The cast of Sister Act.

All photos by Joan Marcus.

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Keep the family fun going in September when ANYTHING GOES sails to Segerstrom Center!

FAMILY FUN MONTH: Toddler Trails Guest Blogger on Her Summer 2013 Bucket List

In celebration of August being Family Fun Month, the Center is delighted to share stories by some of Orange County’s favorite family bloggers. 

By Jennifer Willey of Toddler Trails

Summer is that special time of year when Daddy is home with us (most of the time). Being a teacher and coach we get 8 straight weeks with him (minus the occasional practice or basketball game he referees). The planner that I am, I’ve started a “Summer Bucket List” of all the things we’d like to do or places we really want to go. 

This year, I started off with a “Summer Bucket List Planning Night” just before school ended. This way, everyone was involved in the selection process. Even Daddy got excited with his contribution: 5 days of absolutely nothing (luckily he realizes this is just NOT possible). 

Organizing a Summer Bucket List is rather easy to do. We like to have a variety of different options from amusement parks, vacations, parties, games or just spending time with family members. Since we’ve been doing this now for the last two years, and it really starts off the summer with a lot of excitement. The kids love having the ability to walk up to the cabinet where the list is posted and decide what they want to do on a particular day. Having the ability to cross items off the list feels like an accomplishment, especially when you get to the end of the summer and realize all the fun things the family did over the summer. 

So, what is on tap for this summer? Check out our “2013 Summer Bucket List”: 

Now that it is August, we have 4 weeks left. We have already completed 17 of the 29 items, and have several planned this week. 

What would you include on your “Summer Bucket List”?

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Author: Jennifer Willey 
Website: http://www.ToddlerTrails.com 
Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/ToddlerTrails 
Twitter: http://www.Twitter.com/ToddlerTrails 

Jennifer Willey is a Stay-at-Home Mom who loves crafting and adventures. She is the wife of an Anaheim Teacher and Coach and mom to Handsome Boy, age 5 ½, and Princess, age 4.

In celebration of August being Family Fun Month, the Center is delighted to share stories by some of Orange County’s favorite family bloggers. Speaking of Family Fun, the Broadway musical SISTER ACT will be in town from August 6-18.

FAMILY FUN MONTH: Arts and Crafts from MouseInfo

In celebration of August being Family Fun Month, the Center is delighted to share stories by some of Orange County’s favorite family bloggers. 

By Rebecca Blumenfeld of MouseInfo

While the dog days of summer are winding down, there are still a ton of family activities to help your family connect. If your family enjoys theater as much as I do, then you probably count down the days to your next show. For more than a year now, my boyfriend and I have been obsessed with the upcoming show at Segerstrom Center for the Arts, SISTER ACT! 

Besides listening to the soundtrack over and over, I have decided to do some arts and crafts to get us into the mood to see some finger snapping nuns. The first is a simple but cute craft I found on Pinterest, to make fairies, but, in keeping with the SISTER ACT theme, I changed it to be angels. 

What you'll need: 
• Wood clothespin 
• Cotton ball 
• Chenille stem (pipe cleaner) gold or silver 
• Acrylic paint 
• Fine paintbrush 
• Glue 

How to make it: 
1. Paint a face on the clothespin 
• Use a fine paintbrush to paint on the face, hair and any details (halo) with acrylic craft paint. Make sure that the face is centered over the "legs" of the clothespin. 

2. Work a hole into a large cotton ball 
• Work a small hole into the center of a large cotton ball. Apply a line of glue at the fairy's waist. Push the legs through the hole in the cotton ball and move the cotton ball up to make a fluffy skirt. 

3. Add pipe cleaner wings 
• Make wings out of one pipe cleaner. Wrap it around the waist at the center and twist to secure. Shape into wings, twisting into place. 

4. Paint on shoes 
• Paint on a thin line at the bottom to make shoes. Allow to dry. 

Segerstrom Center for the Arts is an amazing place to celebrate the Arts with your family. Not only is SISTER ACT opening on August 6th a great option but, the entire 2013/2014 Family Series also offers unique ways to share the performing arts with your family. 

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In celebration of August being Family Fun Month, the Center is delighted to share stories by some of Orange County’s favorite family bloggers. Speaking of Family Fun, the Broadway musical SISTER ACT will be in town from August 6-18.

FAMILY FUN MONTH: Let’s Play OC! Guest Blogger shares "Summer Play Dates in OC"

In celebration of August being Family Fun Month, the Center is delighted to share stories by some of Orange County’s favorite family bloggers. 

By Mary K. Tran of Let's Play OC!

Laguna Beach. Photo by LetsPlayOC.com

It's mid-summer and for some of us, we need motivation to keep our families from vegging out in front of the TVs. We are so lucky everything is a skip hop away in Orange County. Time to spend some quality time together. Here are my top 12 favorite things to do in SoCal: 

Laguna Beach. Photo by LetsPlayOC.com

1. Spend a day at the beach building sand castles and playing in the water. 

2. Plan a hiking trip and explore the outdoors. 

3. Plan a day trip/road trip along the coast and make stops along the way. 

4. Enjoy a family picnic at the beach or park at any time of the day. 

Da Vinci – The Genius exhibit at Discovery Science Center. Photo by LetsPlayOC.com

5. Take your family to see movies on the beach or movies in the parks (Segerstrom Center for the Arts presents free Movie Mondays through August 5 in their Arts Plaza). 

6. Pack a picnic and rock out to free summer concerts in the parks. 

7. Take everyone camping, out to the lake, kayaking around the bay, or on a fishing trip. 

8. Keep their reading skills up by visiting your local library and letting them check out their own books. 

Pretend City Children's Museum. Photo by LetsPlayOC.com

9. Visit a museum. Some have free museum days once a month. (Some of our favorites include the Discovery Science Center, Bowers Museum, Pretend City Children's Museum and the Newport Bay Conservancy.) 

10. Visit an amusement park or water park. 

11. Make s'mores and roast hot dogs at a beach bonfire. 

Sno-Biggie. Photo by LetsPlayOC.com

12. Take everyone out for ice cream. 


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Mary K. Tran blogs for a family blog called Let's Play OC! where she shares deals and family fun in Orange County. You can learn more about Mary at www.LetsPlayOC.com. 

Speaking of Family Fun, the Broadway musical SISTER ACT will be in town from August 6-18.

Center Phans Enjoy the Movie of the Night!

Davis Gaines and Jonathan Vietze. Photo by Chris Emerick

A phan-tastic crowd of nearly 4,000 people gathered this past Monday to enjoy the movie, The Phantom of the Opera, which was selected for this summer's series in last year's Audience Fan Favorite poll. 

Many spirited audience members were found donning Phantom masks and period costumes while some had picnic tables adorned with mini-chandeliers and plates filled with delicious French fare. 

Birthday party for Peggy Anderson of Aliso Viejo. Photo by Chris Emerick

The popular pre-film games included a VERY special guest - the one and only Davis Gaines stopped by and co-hosted along with Movie Monday’s MC Jonathan Vietze. Gaines is currently starring in the musical I Do! I Do! now playing at The Laguna Playhouse. He performed the title role in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera more than 2,000 times, during his run on Broadway, in Los Angeles (where he remains LA’s longest-running Phantom) and in San Francisco (where he received the Bay Area Critics’ Award for Best Actor). 

Dan Dominguez and Garrett Schmidt of Laguna Niguel. Photo by Chris Emerick

Fun facts and trivia questions about all-things The Phantom of the Opera were shared as winners received tickets for the Broadway shows SISTER ACT (coming to the Center August 6 - 18), ANYTHING GOES (also coming to the Center September 24 - 29) or to see Gaines in I Do! I Do! Thanks to him, a few lucky winners even took home autographed The Phantom of the Opera posters! All winners walked away with freshly baked croissants, courtesy of Corner Bakery. 

James Che and Annie Vuong. Photo by Chris Emerick

Movie Mondays 2013 concludes on August 5 with yet another fabulous Andrew Lloyd Weber musical, EVITA. Our 2013 - 2014 Broadway Season proudly presents EVITA December 10-22.

Now is the chance to vote for next year’s Movie Mondays Audience Fan Favorite as the online poll is open. Please visit www.scfta.org/mmpoll. 

Photo by Chris Emerick

FAMILY FUN MONTH: Rockin' Mama on Children and the Arts

By Caryn Bailey of Rockin' Mama

Growing up as an only child in Los Angeles, a city that is as vast as it is diverse, I had seemingly endless opportunities and experiences to be exposed to art, culture, and entertainment. I remember sitting inside our local theater for the very first time, wide-eyed with wonder and swept up in the beauty and emotion of the talented cast of 42nd Street. From there, I developed a passion for the arts, particularly musical theater, and have seen some of the most legendary productions performed in theaters all over the world. 

My children saw their first Broadway production before they turned five and my hope is that early exposure to the arts will inspire their own creativity and passions. Here are three ways children benefit from exposure to the arts. 

Ta'Rea Campbell, Alysha Deslorieux and Trisha Jeffrey in SISTER ACT
Photo by Joan Marcus

1. The pursuit of undiscovered talents. Children have an innate sense of creativity that must be fostered at an early age. Exposure to music, dance, and theater can inspire children to take a class or participate in a school production. 

2. Exposure to educational opportunities not replicated inside of a classroom. Classroom education is only a part of what helps a child grow and mature into their own person. Live theatrical productions offer children the opportunity to explore new places and cultures through music and dance. Similarly, many productions are period-based, exposing children to history in a way that is visual and meaningful. 

3. Unique family bonding opportunities. Some of the best family experiences are those that happen after the production where lively discussions can take place. Very often these productions have themes and messages that parents can then discuss with their children long after the curtain has closed. 

Cast of SISTER ACT. Photo by Joan Marcus

There are still plenty of summer days left for families to head out to the theater! Segerstrom Center for the Arts will offer three free performances on August 3rd as a celebration of their award-winning program Summer at the Center. And on August 6th, SISTER ACT debuts at the Center. Broadway's musical comedy is based on the 1992 film and features original music by Alan Menken, whose work includes Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid. This family-friendly show is a remarkable testament to the power of friendship and will have audiences young and old on their feet!

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In celebration of August being Family Fun Month, the Center is delighted to share stories by some of Orange County’s favorite family bloggers. Speaking of Family Fun, the Broadway musical SISTER ACT will be in town from August 6-18.

Say "Hallelujah" to the SISTER ACT Menu!

Photo by Joan Marcus

It’s a match made in heaven: a delightful, pre-show menu at Leatherby's Cafe Rouge to complement SISTER ACT. From beef tenderloin carpaccio (“Take Me to Heaven”) to a choice of crusted Lake Superior white fish (“Mother Superior”) or roasted organic chicken with white bean purée (“Sister Act”), these entrees are sure to make you say “Hallelujah!” Complete your meal with a tribute to Whoopi Goldberg – red velvet whoopie pie. Some would say it’s nearly a religious experience! 

Chef Ross Pangilinan’s creations will be available from August 6 to 18. To view the full SISTER ACT menu, please click here. 

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