Friday, December 13, 2013

Step Into Character Mary Poppins Party Dick Van Dyke Julie Andrews

A Mary Poppins Interactive Party
In honor of the Birthday of Dick Van Dyke
& the Premiere of Saving Mr. Banks

Dick Van Dyke in mid-air,
Mary Poppins 8x10" Photo
Dick Van Dyke, whose 88th birthday was December 13, 2013, deserves more credit for his dancing abilities. He was doing cardio before doing cardio was cool. (In 2014, his birthday will be 12-13-14.)

Marc Breaux and Dee Dee Wood choreographed the song Step In Time for the movie Mary Poppins, the 1964 film.

Dick Van Dyke played Bert the chimney sweep and Julie Andrews played the title role.

Loved this little clip because it shows the amount of work that went into creating the Step In Time segment of the film.



Step in time, step in time
Come on, mateys, step in time
Step in time
Step in time, step in time
Step in time, step in time
Never need a reason,
Never need a rhyme
Step in time, you step in time!

In December 2013, Dick Van Dyke and Julie Andrews celebrate Mary Poppins and the opening of the much anticipated Disney film about the making of Mary Poppins, Saving Mr. Banks. Stars of the new film, Emma Thompson and Tom Hanks are also in the video.




In 1964, Julie Andrews won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role as Mary Poppins. The film and those who worked on it won and were nominated for many awards that year. It won the Best Picture Oscar.


In 1965, she was nominated for the  Academy Award Best Actress for her role as Maria von Trapp in The Sound of Music. Her costar in this film was the great Christopher Plummer, who also has a birthday on December 13th.


Kick your knees up!
Kick your knees up, step in time
Kick your knees up, step in time
Never need a reason,
Never need a rhyme
Kick your knees up, step in time

Have you been to sing-along film showings? The Sound of Music is, if not the number one sing-along movie, certainly one to the top five or ten. The sing-alongs often encourage costumes and they're great fun!

I've also seen the seasonal Nutcracker Dance-Along and the Goodfellas Curse-Along.

Attend a Mary Poppins Sing-Along to celebrate the start of 2014 at The El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, CA. It ran January 10-20. "Sing along to the words on the big screen in this exciting interactive movie experience." January 10th Special Opening Night Show with a Costume Contest.

Be on the lookout for Interactive movie sing-alongs that may come to your area. I've seen a few of these advertised for Mary Poppins, one in London and one in New Jersey -- unfortunately both are over now. It's sort of Mary Poppins meets the Rocky Horror Picture Show experience??

You're given props and encouraged to dance in the aisles, assuming the film is shown in a traditional theater. The possibility of this sort of thing is endless. In New Jersey, lyrics were shown on the screen and actors were dressed as the title characters.

Julie Andrews Dick Van Dyke Mary Poppins 8x10" Photo


Party Planning, Activity Idea:
This sounds like fun. Not only should you attend one of these shows, but whenever you see one of your favorite musicals is going to be on television, arm yourself with goodies and throw an Interactive Movie Sing Along Party.  

Try it in honor of Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke and Christopher Plummer. Do it to become a legend in your own neighborhood. Once everyone is up and moving around, it doesn't seem as silly. :) It's an opportunity to bond with your kids and your friends.

 
Mary Poppins: 50th Anniversary Edition (DVD + Digital Copy) 
Optionally you can stream the movie on your computer or TV. Rent or buy it. You may or may not get extra features or end credits that come with the film as it is on the disc.

An audience participation kit was handed out. It included kazoos, bubbles and noise makers. A local candy company provided candy. Perfect local business promotional idea.

Of course think about the ages of your guests, the amount of supervision they'll need with items in the kits and the environment where you're showing the film. Have two bags, one for kids and one for adults?!

"...An interactive pack to help you immerse yourself in the film – feed the birds (tuppence a bag), have a tea party on the ceiling, march with the suffragettes, jump into a painting and join the chimney sweeps’ mischief."

Can you use the songs in the movie as inspiration for activities or costumes? Let's Go Fly a Kite? Penguin Dance. Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. 

Maybe you can make up a word. String together the names of your pets and say them really fast? 
Make miniature kites. 
Color kites. 
Make a mini chimney brush
Choreograph a little line stepping dance to a song?
Move around and sing as much as possible!

Getting up and moving with the actors, with the songs we love so much is a super..... idea!


Round the chimney!
Round the chimney, step in time
Round the chimney, step in time
Never need a reason,
Never need a rhyme
Round the chimney, step in time








Tuppence a... bag
Tuppence a... bag by Adorability
Check out more Mary Bags at Zazzle
 



An Assortment of Adorable Kid-Friendly, Kid-Sized umbrellas from Kidorable

Kidorable is a leading maker of rain gear for kids. Whether your child is into animals, bugs, dragons, princesses or.... You'll probably find it. We've seen these in action, so to speak, at different events. So cute. 

Mix and match with what your kids already have or surprise them with a set. You won't have a problem finding your child in a crowd!





Lace, fabric paper parasols, different materials, colors and styles  

Mary Poppins Day is August 29th. Have you used parasols and umbrellas in planning a weddings or other event? For decorating your little girl's room?



Resources: 


Some information from Walt Disney and Wikipedia web sites
Short excerpts from the song Step In Time throughout

The Lanceville NJ Patch

The London Jewish Baby Directory

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