As a student at North High School, Bruce Wilson wanted to be a performer, although his principal said he should be an educator.
Now, Wilson has combined the two careers.
He has developed a show about nutrition, "Kid Power: Operation Lunch Line," which allows him to act while teaching children.
"I'm certainly a singer and a dancer and an actor, but the material I've chosen to perform is educational in that sense, and I certainly love to see the excitement on the children's faces as they participate in the shows," Wilson said.
"Operation Lunch Line," a 3-D interactive show lasting about an hour, follows a boy named Max who does not feel well because he has been eating poorly. Kid Power, the superhero of the show, is the leader of the mission, and he guides the audience in helping teach Max proper nutrition and exercise habits.
The show, which features musical numbers and dancing, takes the audience inside Max's body to see how food affects him. Animated body organs also teach the audience throughout the show.
Wilson said that through the creatively presented nutrition lessons, children enjoy themselves and retain more information.
"When learning becomes fun, they forget that they're actually learning, and they're just having fun," Wilson said.
After graduating from Friends University, Wilson went to New York City to act. In 2001, he was cast as Slim Goodbody, a character who promotes healthy eating. As he traveled to schools performing, he said he fell in love with presenting programs to elementary school children.
To launch his own children's show, he created Stay Fit Productions in 2005, which also has another Kid Power show about environmental awareness. In the spring of 2008, he met with Intake Studio, a local motion graphic and video boutique, to create "Operation Lunch Line."
Throughout the show, Wilson acts in front of a projection screen while the animation plays behind him. The video part of the show is timed with Wilson's movements to simulate those actions on screen, said Troy Lott, president and senior editor of Intake Studio.
"The kids are going to have a good experience," Lott said. "I can guarantee that it's going to be more visually interesting than any other program that these kids will get to see."
Schools have two options to see Kid Power. Teachers can take children on field trips to the national touring version of the show, which is traveling to 40 cities across the United States this year. Schools can also purchase a version of the show to be performed as an in-school assembly.
The national tour starts Feb. 2 with a 10 a.m. show at Friends University; this show is open to public.
Wilson said the show's message is important because it teaches children to fight obesity, a problem the country struggles with.
"What a remarkable thing to at least dream that some child out there is going to have less trouble with overeating and underexercising if they see a Kid Power show," Wilson said.
Comments