By Karen Wolitzer
This innovative series was created by Cory Rosenberg and it's been running on WLIW for the past two years. The shows are short up to five minutes each and they run between other programs...but when they come on kids run to watch and sit glued to the TV until they're over.
Rag dolls Sheira and Loli are twin sisters who are very different yet compliment each other wonderfully. Assisting them, in running Ditty Doodle Works, is a very wise and kind of silly professor named Eeky Eeky Kronk. He gets his name because he builds these wild contraptions, which work for a while, but then they go eeky eeky kronk and stop running. But the professor doesn't give up on them. He tries again and again until he gets them to work properly.
Working with them is Miss Molly, a creative, spiritual artist. She brings out the artistic aspects of Ditty Doodle Works the coloring, painting and sculpting. Then there are the Funkins Pink-A-Dink and Bluedels (it's clear that someone had a lot of fun making up names for these adorable characters.). Pink-A-Dink is pink and Bluedels is blue. They're big, furry characters that talk very, very fast. Only Sheira and Loli can understand them.
All of these characters have become so popular that when they visit malls, to make public appearances, vendors complain because there are too many people blocking the entrances to their stores. And that's one of the reasons that Cory decided to bring them to Westbury Music Fair they needed a bigger venue.
Kids love the show, says Cory. And it's very, very parent friendly. It's not the kind of music that makes you want to strangle yourself. And although it's for kids between 2 and 6-years-old, anyone from birth to 100 can enjoy it.
Children really aren't the only ones who are impressed by the TV show. It was recently nominated for a New York Emmy Award and won the New York Broadcaster's Award for Outstanding Individual Program or Series Designed for Children. Now that's impressive!
The Westbury show is called Ditty Doodle Live: The Gift of Song Tour. It follows Sheira and Loli as they search for this mysterious and elusive gift of song. While keeping children captivated it teaches them about self-esteem, self-awareness, tolerance, compassion and even the mind/body connection. As a matter of fact, their slogan is: Ditty Doodle Works it's like vitamins for a child's imagination.
Pretty much the way a vitamin enhances a child's body, we feel we enhance a child's mind, says Cory. The songs, which the kids love, all have messages. Change Your Mind is about perspective. It talks about how you can take a bad situation and look at it differently to get you through it. Another song, called Be What You Want to Be, is about setting goals and going for them. And the most popular song is Froggy My Love, a toe-tapping tune that kids adore.
So, if you've got little ones between 2 and 6-years-old and you're looking for some quality entertainment that will have them smiling from ear-to-ear, take them to see Loli, Sheira and all their friends. They'll love it!
Westbury Music Fair's upcoming children's shows
- Maurice Sendak's Little Bear starring in Little Bear and The Enchanted Wood
October 13 at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
- The Gingerbread Players and Jack's
The Legend of Pecos Bill and The Secret of Invisibility
November 10 at 11 a.m.
- Yates Musical Theater's
A Christmas Carol
December 15, 18, 19, 20 at 11 a.m.
- Babes in Toyland
December 21 at 11 a.m.
Ditty Doodle Works
September 21 and 22 at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.Westbury Music Fair, 960 Brush Hollow Road, Westbury
Tickets are $18.50; available at Westbury Music Fair's box office, Ticketmaster: (631) 888-9000, online at musicfair.com or by calling 1-800-99-Ditty.
