… CHRISTMAS TREE, LIGHT UP!

The New Year celebrations, work-free days and school holidays have gone by. Paradoxical as it is, but many of us will probably agree that New Year holidays are a real test of strength for most parents. Because it is a real challenge to think of a program of New Year activities for children who do not want to sit at home for seven long days. Of course, this program includes the much-coveted tickets to New Year celebrations purchased in good time. But even if a happy parent has thought out an amusement program for the child far ahead, it does not mean that the child will enjoy the proposed program. And it is not the fact that the price of a ticket for a particular New Year celebration will be appropriate.

The choice of the fun program should be careful. But, as it turns out, we plan, but organizers of various festivals have it their own way. What was it like in Soviet times? Our parents took us to New Year parties at different culture centers. Tickets to the festivities were either given to them by trade unions in their workplace or they were so cheap that even if the show did not meet the conservative ideas of the time, one didn't feel so sad. We also remember that gifts from Father Frost [Russian Santa Clause equivalent] at all New Year parties were the same. But no parent could even think of checking the expiration date on the sweets - there was a strong belief that children would not be treated to expired candies. Our tastes were not very picky in those days. It was not difficult to cheer up Soviet kids. But hardly anybody would have thought of putting running shoes on Father Frost, a wedding dress on the Snow Maiden or decorating an artificial Christmas tree with low-quality tinsel.

Time has changed. Now New Year celebrations are held in many amusement centers - theaters, family entertainment centers, palaces, clubs and other social and cultural institutions. There are more opportunities in terms of equipment and scenery, but have they become better? The price of a ticket to a New Year party varies from 6 to 70 manats. It is clear that prices depend on the location. And if a ticket is rather expensive, the party is held in a fairly prestigious entertainment center. And in this case it is also taken into account what ticket a parent buys - sitting or standing, close to a monitor through which you can watch your child or not. It should also be remembered that access to entertainment centers is fee-based both for the child and the adult. So if a ticket costs 50 manats, two will cost 100, etc. Not every parent will let his child go to a fun center on his own. He will stand in another room and wait for the end of the show. But the prestige of the festival venue is not yet a guarantee of quality - production, content, originality. It is not the fact that a child will enjoy the program and the gift will consist of safe-to-eat sweets and non-toxic toys. The performances are not varied, while many don't even bother to describe them in advance. Old tales are often made into new ones, with a complete fiasco of the staging line.

The following comments were made by parents on a fairly popular online forum after several New Year parties. We have omitted the names of places where the parties were held, but that does not change the problem. In all the theaters, centers and other public institutions regardless of ticket prices, there was a poor production, a lack of proper staging and directing, and, accordingly, a wish of the organizers to amuse children to the fullest and create a truly New Year mood.

"We went to a New Year party today. What can I say? On a five-point scale it can be assessed as three and a minus. Children did sit to the end, but there was no enthusiasm as expected. It was a rundown room without decorations, the Christmas tree was old-fashioned, there was no plot, the only thing of interest to my children was the magician, and that was because he had animals. So I have made yet another promise not to buy tickets for our New Year parties. I wish I had spent the 25 manats on a talking pen."

"They gave us a ticket at school. The play by Abdulla Saiq in Gangnam style and the twist by Tik-Tik Xanim with Sican Bey were quite something. Children don't understand this lack of taste. They had fun. What is scary is that they are acquiring bad taste. But it is everywhere, as is Gangnam style. The gift consisted of Turkish and Iranian sweets. At least they were not expired."

"We went to the New Year party called 'Mission Impossible'. The tree and the gifts were a nightmare."

"We went to a Christmas tree party yesterday. Awful. Santa Claus was a young man of about 17. When I entered the room, there was a feeling that he had lost something. Wasn't it impossible to find a grandfather with that money? Amateur level. During the show which lasted one hour, the actors constantly talked to each other. And the advertising ... was only intended to make money. But the gift wasn't too bad. The toy was so-so. Girls got Mickey Mice and boys had Smurfs, bears and sweets."

"We were at the circus yesterday. It was so cold! The children sat in gloves and hoods. If anyone wants to go, it is a good idea to put on something warm. The show wasn't too bad."

It would be wrong to say that there was no positive feedback at all, but negative feedback certainly prevailed. Some parents liked the children's shows, but, for example, one parent said the plot in one of them was "about nothing". And she did not quite understand why the positive character was supposed to hit the negative hero. In her opinion, even if it is the victory of good over evil, it represents unforgivable propaganda of cruelty which every child can perceive differently.

Commenting on the state of affairs in the area of New Year celebrations, a theater employee has said in a conversation with R + that the production of children's shows was an independent decision of a theater and its artistic director. Gone are the days when the script was to be agreed with relevant structures from the ideological point of view. The performances are held with the participation of the theater cast, while other places simply invite actors. And there is no guarantee that it is really professional actors who act at various entertainment centers.  

It seems that in addition to licensing and taxation of Santa Clauses, Snow Maidens and photographers accompanying them, there should be some control on the part of the state in the area of New Year entertainment. It would be nice to apply certain standards designed at state level. The gifts should also have a quality certificate, which must be inserted in each package. It must not contain unsafe candies or toxic toys. In addition, parents should have complete information about a New Year party they are taking their child to. For example, each party should have its own age category. A show can not be equally interesting for children aged three and 10. In addition, each show must exhibit a poster indicating the duration of the program. It is not very easy for a child to spend two and a half hours at a New Year party. Each show must have a name which should not be repeated every year. And, of course, Santa Claus and Snow Maiden must be beautiful. Their faces and acting should be memorable. Organizers of performances must remember that they should instill good taste and a sense of beauty in children. Although New Year celebrations are a relic of the Soviet past, they are still our reality and should elicit positive emotions in kids. From a moral standpoint, they should develop qualities such as kindness, courage, generosity and love of the country in the younger generation.