April 25, 2010

I have been interested in seeing Portland Cello Project perform ever since I first heard about them. My father is a cello player, and I grew up listening to him and my brothers play. I’m not making it to a lot of concerts since Alex was born unless they are baby friendly. So when I heard that Portland Cello Project was going to perform You Who, I bought a ticket and went to the show.

You Who is a monthly children’s rock variety show at McMenamin’s Kennedy School that includes dance, comedy, live music, and more. The doors open at noon and the show starts at 1 pm. There is early entertainment before show time for early arrivals.

Alex and I arrived at the show at 12:45. The parking lot was full when we got to the show, so we parked on the street. We had purchased our tickets ahead of time online, but there were still tickets available at the door when we got to the show. It is recommended that you buy tickets in advance in case of a sell out show. These are very popular events and a lot of families come. Tickets are $10 adults, $5 for walkers up to age 12, and non walkers (like Alex) are free. You can buy advance tickets online (they put your name on a list at the door, you do not print out a ticket) or at Black Wagon at 3964 N Mississippi Ave, Portland, OR 97227.

There was a craft activity making animal ears for the children, and I got Alex a pair of cat ears. The person in charge of the craft made them for me since my hands were full with baby and diaper bag. Because my hands were full, I was not able to take a lot of photos of the event, but I did get a couple of Alex with his cat ears.

There were people dressed up as huge owls wandering around the room. My cousin and her husband brought their daughter who is almost 2 year old, and she just loved the owls. She kept running over to see them throughout the show.

Kids have so much energy at that age! They love to get out and do things, which is why Open Play at Inflatable Kingdom is so great. Kids get to enjoy a fun, supervised activity rain or shine and parents can relax a little while.

The show included a comedian who performed a sing-a-long about the “Itsy Bitsy Walrus” on an accordion, dancers, a man who made synthesizer sound effects with his voice, an alien song with big cardboard cutouts, a cartoon, a guitar player who sang a strange song about animals, and of course, the Portland Cello Project.

Alex really enjoyed dancing with the rhythm when the dancers performed. He was getting progressively more tired and grumpy though during the show as it was his naptime, and he finally did fall asleep on my lap. We were initially sitting on the floor, but when Alex fell asleep, I found a nice comfortable chair along the wall and moved into the much better seat. The Portland Cello Project was interesting to watch perform, and I am glad I had the opportunity to do so.

The show was entertaining and the children seemed to really enjoy it. A lot of families left a little early though since at 1 ½ hours, it was just a little long for some of the little ones. My cousin’s little girl, on the other hand, was still ready for more when we left the show, so we went to the park and enjoyed some sunshine.

The next You Who is May 30 with The Dandy Warhols. It will be the last show until September and it should be lots of fun!

No related posts.