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October 2011

choosinG aPReschool

Addressing bullying, theatrically {Page 22}

the okee dokee Brothers paddle the mississippi {Page 15}

12 diff erent

types—do

you know the

diff erence?

{Page 28}

issueThe

education

education resources {Page 32}

22

22 October 2011

hen Minneapolis-based playwright Rita

Cannon started writing Mean, an original

musical about bullying, she found out that

she had a lot to learn. “When I was in

school,” Cannon says, “I certainly

witnessed and experienced playground-

type bullying. I’m only in my early 20s

now, but I was surprised at how social

media and cyberbullying have made the

situation so much worse.”

STANDING UPTO BULLYING

W

YPC play helps kids—and parents—

address bullying

By Julie Kendrick

issueThe

education

23

October 2011 23

STANDING UPTO BULLYING

Cannon’s view that bullying has become

bigger, faster, and meaner helped her to fi nd

a unique viewpoint for the play, which was

produced this spring by Youth Performance

Company, and will be reprised October 5

through 23. The musical play, which

features original songs by well-known local

performer and composer Kahlil Queen,

presents the stories of three teens: a young

woman teased because of her physical

appearance, a youth harassed for his sexual

orientation, and a devout Muslim teen

being tormented at school because of her

faith. The play uses plenty of technology,

hip music and high-energy dance numbers

to share a serious message: bullying can

stop, but only if we’re brave enough to step

up and say “no,” whether we’re parents,

kids, or teachers.

In this scene from Mean, a youth is harassed due

to his sexual orientation.

SubmitteD Photo

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24

24 October 2011

The production received considerable

media attention last spring, and this fall

will probably be no exception, especially

since it’s running in October, which is

National Bullying Prevention Month. “It’s

something that’s on everyone’s minds right

now,” says Jacie Knight, artistic director

of Youth Performance Company, who

initially approached Cannon and Queen

about joining forces for the play. “Every

day, there seem to be more stories in the

news about this issue, and people can feel

powerless. The great thing about this

show is that it’s not only entertaining, but

it’s energizing for people to feel they can

make a difference to stop the epidemic.”

the bullying epidemic“Epidemic” is certainly an apt description.

According to stopbullying.gov, a new

government website devoted to the issue,

56% of students have personally witnessed

some type of bullying at school. PACER’s

National Bullying Prevention Center

reports that things are no better in

cyberspace, with 42% of children

reporting that they have been bullied

while online, and one in four saying it has

happened more than once.

The government is taking notice on

many fronts, and recently held a White

House Conference on Bullying. Speaking

at the conference, Secretary of Health and

Human Services Kathleen Sebelius said,

“Students involved in bullying are more

likely to struggle in school, use drugs and

alcohol, and have physical and mental

health issues that can linger well into

adulthood. Young people who do the

bullying also pay a price—they are more

likely to be violent as adults and get

involved in criminal activity. Even

bystanders, the young people who are

witnesses to bullying, are more likely to

become depressed and anxious, and feel

unsafe at school. Bullying is not just

another stage of development and it

should not be accepted by anyone,

anywhere, at any age.”

To begin tackling this complex issue,

Cannon conducted original research in

the form of interviews with adults, kids,

and a seventh-grade class. That research

helped her uncover the stories that would

be woven into the production. One key

thing she learned was that kids often face

bullying alone. “Parents can underesti-

mate the extent of bullying, or think it’s

not an issue at their kids’ school,” she

says. “They assume that if there’s a

problem, their kids will tell them. But the

kids I talked to said they were too

embarrassed or scared to approach their

parents, or fearful that a parental

response could be clumsy enough to make

things worse.”

And if parents won’t believe that their

kids are being bullied, it’s even harder

for them to come to terms that it’s their

child who is doing the bullying.

According to LG Text Ed, a foundation

created by the mobile phone manufac-

turer to educate parents about the

dangers and disastrous consequences of

teen and tween mobile phone misuse,

43 percent of teens admit to putting

someone else down or insulting them in

a text, while only 10 percent of parents

believe their teens had ever participated

in this type of hurtful behavior.

how bullying happens nowThe adults depicted in Mean are sometimes

well-meaning, but often inept in their

responses. Brianna Belland, who plays a

teacher in the show and contributed to

“I think one of the important things Mean does is educate parents on the ways that bullying can happen to their children now, instead of the ways they might have experienced it when they were kids.” Gayle Sherman-Crandall, therapist

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25

October 2011 25

Cannon’s initial research, says, “For any

parent who thinks, ‘Do things like this

really happen?’ I want to say that yes, they

do. I’m sorry that they do, and I’m sorry

that if I’m going to be completely honest

with myself, I never spoke one word about

my junior high experiences with my

bullies, until I was interviewed for this

show.” Belland says seeing aspects of her

own story told in the play had a powerful

impact on her. “It wasn’t until after

rehearsals started that I realized how

comments made to me in the sixth grade

still affect the way I think of myself today

in my twenties.”

Gayle Sherman Crandell, therapist

and co-founder of the Crocus Hill

Counseling Center, has a son, Noah, who

appeared in the spring produc-

For Parents: What to Do if Your Child is Bullied

Talk with your child. Focus on your child.

Express your concern and make it clear that you want to help.

Empathize with your child. Say bullying is wrong, that it is not their fault, and that you are glad they had the courage to tell you about it.

Help your child develop strategies and skills for handling bullying. Provide suggestions for ways to respond to bullying, and help your child gain confidence by rehearsing their responses.

Work together to find solutions. Ask your child what they think can be done to help. Reassure them that the situation can be handled privately. 

For Kids: What to Do about BulliesTake a stand and do not join in. Do not stand around watching someone being bullied. If you feel safe, tell the person to stop. Make it clear that you do not support what is going on.

Walk away. If you walk away and don’t join in, you have taken their audience and power away.

Give support. Talk to the person being bullied and tell them that you are there to help. 

Talk to someone you trust. Reach out to someone you trust to discuss the problem, especially if you feel like the person may be at risk of serious harm to themselves or others.

whaT To do

Source: StoPbullying.gov

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26

26 October 2011

tion. She says that seeing a performance

of a show like Mean can be helpful in

opening up an important discussion for

families. “Kids who are being bullied

can often feel extremely isolated, and

seeing a play in which they can relate to

the problems of the characters up on the

stage can help them to feel that they’re

not alone,” she says. Crandell, the

mother of three teenagers, says that she

appreciated the way the show “expresses

the complexity of meanness in a unique

way. It’s not a heavy-handed ‘After

School Special.’ It’s lots of fun to see,

even if it is a serious subject.”

Crandell urges parents not to assume

that bullying has not impacted their

children. “As parents, we don’t necessarily

know the extent of this problem, espe-

cially with the isolating factor of the

Internet,” she says. “What was once a

playground activity doesn’t end at the final

bell of the school day, but can continue

around the clock. I think one of the

important things Mean does is educate

parents on the ways that bullying can

happen to their children now, instead of

the ways they might have experienced it

when they were kids.”

With such a serious subject matter,

Knight credits the Mean creators, Cannon

and Queen, for keeping a spark of hope

alive through story and song. “In the play,

all three characters find a solution that

helps them begin to see their way

through, whether by finding a friend to

talk with, standing up to the bullies or

switching schools. And when the entire

cast joins hands at the end of the show for

the rousing finale, ‘Stand Up,’ our

audiences are on their feet and clapping

along. They just love it,” Knight reports.

The biggest message from the show is

that there is power in a group of kids

who take a stand and say “no” to bullies.

As Secretary Sebelius encouraged at the

Bullying Conference, it’s time to begin

“speaking up the next time you hear

someone use a homophobic slur, step-

ping in when you see someone being

preyed upon and letting your local educa-

tion leaders, from principals to school

boards, know that bullying isn’t just part

of growing up—it’s a serious danger to

our children.”

Knight expresses her hope that, after

a visit to the show, families will have

more than just torn ticket stubs and

dog-eared programs, but a new opportu-

nity for conversation. As therapist

Crandell says, “This issue is one we can

change just by shining a light on it. It’s

something we can impact in people’s

lives—today.”

To learn more about performances of

Mean October 5 through 23 at Youth

Performance Company, visit youthperfor-

manceco.org or call the box office at

612-623-9080. •

A scene from the spring production of Mean.

SubmitteD Photo

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