Pushy Parents

In this week’s blog I wanted to address a topic that I haven’t addressed yet but a topic I find myself discussing on a regular basis which is ‘Pushy Parents.’ With the financial rewards for success getting even bigger and bigger and with more young people in the media spotlight is it creating more pushy parents?

For many years pushy parents have been associated with child models and child actors but now it seems there are Pushy Parents who are pushing their children to success in all manner of activities. Not only now is there great financial reward for success but social kudos for parents for having successful children and in some cases stigma around parents whose children don’t succeed as we as a society become more interested in what everyone else is doing and keeping up with the Jones.

With the media interrogation in to the lives of young celebrities their parents are becoming publicly known for their position as the parent of and have their lives interrogated. This has been highlighted by TV series like True Hollywood Stories and the tabloid press who need a story like a pushy parent to get viewers and even young celebrities are now getting in on the act by selling stories on their own parents to get media attention.

I think Pushy Parents still exist today but I also feel that now because young people are getting exposed to media earlier and because their interaction with media is more intense that they are pushing for stardom and success themselves and not because of their parents. Young people see programmes like Hannah Montana and High School Musical and see the popularity that the actors and actresses have and want that for themselves. Young people are now also more aware than ever before of the levels of income these young people make.

I feel that parents should encourage, motivate and push their children to succeed but in areas that their children want to succeed in not the areas they want their children to go in to. Children need the freedom to find their own dream and then the support of their family to make it a reality. Regardless of how high or low the financial reward for their dream job would be parents need to worry about how happy their child is going to be in later life not how much money they are going to earn. Too many parents try and live their dreams through their children using them as if they were puppets instead of loving them for the individual that they are. Helping your child to live their dreams and not to live yours is an achievement to be proud of which means a million times more than them living out your dreams.

So be a Pushy Parent but not in the way we think of when we think of Pushy Parents. Push your children to be as happy and fulfilled as they can be. Give them belief, give them strength and give them support to achieve their dreams as you the parent have such an important part to play in your child’s development and hard work now can help secure happiness and fulfilment for your child for life. Don’t let your chance to create a great life for your child go to waste. Being a Pushy Parent in the old sense of the term can do so much damage to your child that may never be repaired. Just because they may be seen as successful or a celebrity by the general public or just because they have lots of money it doesn’t mean they are happy or fulfilled. Some of the most so called successful people in the world are some of the most unhappiest. So help your child to be the most happiest and fulfilled they can be as to me that is the mark of success.

Have you got an opinion on ‘Pushy Parents’? Then you can share your views by joining in our topic of the week by going to:

http://www.talentedyoungpeople.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=443

Just as a heads up there will be no blog this week so our next blog will be published on the 21st of May.

Adam Sibley
Founder of the Talented Young People organisation
www.talentedyoungpeople.com
"Envisage it, Believe it, Achieve it!"

http://www.talentedyoungpeople.blogspot.com

Pantomimes

With less than three weeks to go to Christmas Panto season is upon us. Pantomimes are a Christmas tradition here in the UK the same as mince pies and late night shopping. Pantomimes are put on in nearly every theatre up and down the country with a raft of celebrities appearing in a range of roles and productions, anything from ‘Aladdin’ to ‘Peter Pan.’

As well as being a good way of getting in the festive spirit Pantomimes are a great chance for families to all go and watch some live theatre together. Pantomimes are designed to be fun for all the family and this is the way the shows are produced and promoted. If a kid in the audience laughs, shouts, screams or cries it is seen as acceptable and part of the experience as pantomimes are all about interaction but with many theatre productions during the year this wouldn’t be acceptable so parents can’t always take the young ones with them.

Now I bet your thinking why am I talking about pantomimes in my weekly blog, well the reason is that I think pantomimes are a great a way to get young people interested in the theatre and acting. For many children the first live theatre they will see is a pantomime and in many cases is the only live theatre they will see. The experience of live theatre is a magical experience and the fairytale like stories used in pantomimes can add to this.

Another great thing with pantomimes is that many productions use children from local dancing, acting and singing schools with some even holding open auditions for young cast members. They provide a real chance for young people to get experience in front of packed audiences every night which are very hard to come by. Through a pantomime they can experience the hectic schedules which are the life on stage actors and work in front of the loudest most appreciative crowds that there are.

Say what you want about the cheesy scripts and the awful costumes but I think you can’t beat a bit of good old panto. Those people that criticise pantomimes don’t understand there place in the development of theatre, acting and talented young people. Pantomimes should be an enjoyable time for families to spend together but they can also be the start of many young acting careers across the country and a way to encourage young people to go to more live theatre.

We here at Talented Young People want to know your thoughts about Pantomimes and you can share your views by going to:

http://www.talentedyoungpeople.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=332#332

Adam Sibley
Founder of the Talented Young People organisation
www.talentedyoungpeople.com
"Envisage it, Believe it, Achieve it!"

http://www.talentedyoungpeople.blogspot.com