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Evolution of children's entertainment

Fred Penner one of 10 musicians at Whistler Music Fest

What: Whistler Music and Arts Festival

Who: Fred Penner

When: Thursday, Aug. 10 to Sunday, Aug. 13

Where: Whistler Village

Admission: Free

Fred Penner, a veteran family performer of almost three decades, talks about the evolution of children’s entertainment over the years. Penner is one of 10 performers joining the power-packed lineup at the free outdoor Whistler Music and Arts Festival Aug. 10 to 13 in Whistler Village.

In the mid-80s, children tuned into the lovable characters and singing hosts of Sesame Street. Raffi’s The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round was a coming-of-age anthem for youngsters. Who could forget the harmonies of Sharon, Lois and Bram and their dancing elephants? And every morning for years kids tuned into the CBC hit Fred Penner’s Place.

Music, joy and education were at the heart of everything these musicians/entertainers did, crisscrossing North America with their positive-message songs and interactive live shows and gracing both television and radio airwaves.

Penner says once big business started to realize the moneymaking potential of marketing to children in the late 1990s, the children’s entertainment industry took a drastic downturn.

"We were doing records that had philosophical value," Penner said. "We believe in the power of music to have a positive effect on the young and impressionable child. A lot of the industry looked at it as a moneymaker, and put together poor quality children’s records with bad production value and no positive energy in the music. They would back these albums with a big conglomerate that would advertise it to the hilt."

Human hosts were replaced with puppets and cartoons. Teenage Mutant Turtles, Power Rangers, Barney – a high tech world of puppetry and computer generation replaced the warm-blooded entertainment of earlier years.

"If you only give them a high tech world then children have a false image of what life is all about," Penner said. "Life is family and other human beings and communicating with each other, nurturing hopes and dreams. The complete opposite of the fast-paced way of life."

Penner views his energetic and lively performances not just as entertainment, but the opportunity for families to connect with one another, a time of bonding and growing.

"The value of communicating to kids by going out for a concert, a walk, a picnic is something of value," Penner said. "I think kids are getting lost in the economic shuffle of our time. They are not finding the quiet moments because they are left to their own devices or technology. They don’t have those moments where they can be quiet and relaxed. They have to be active all the time in order to be happy. We are in a very fast paced world where anything can happen in a nano second. This whole way of everything being immediate for children can be very confusing, so my hope is that live performance keeps a balance to the insanity."

Put down the Game Boy, turn off the computer and switch the DVD player off: Penner takes both kids and families on a wonderful musical journey of storytelling and humour, a performance that has won numerous awards and wielded 12 albums, countless books and a television show that had first children viewers, now parents asking for Penner to visit their town, so they can introduce their children to the music they grew up on.

When Penner isn’t hitting the road, the family entertainer, singer/songwriter, composer, actor, writer,, TV host and keynote speaker is hard at work bringing his positive messages through other creative mediums.

He is currently composing the music for YTV’s Tipi Tales. He was the first children’s entertainer to headline at the Los Angeles Amphitheatre. He was a four-time recipient of the Parents’ Choice Award. The two-time Juno Award winner and eight-time nominee magically crawled out of a hollow log for 12 seasons, nearly 900 episodes on CBC TV’s hit Fred Penner’s Place. The show also ran for four years on the U.S.’s Nickelodeon, reaching out to more than 55 million viewers over the years.

His album Happy Feet was named Best Children’s Album of the Year by Entertainment Weekly. He lent his high-profile presence to numerous causes including becoming a spokesperson for organizations such as UNESCO, World Vision, UNICEF and the National Conference on Down’s syndrome, which he chaired.

Originally primed for a successful career as an economist (Penner finished in the top 10 per cent of his class while completing a B.A. in economics), the death of his father and sister, who suffered from Down’s syndrome, within the same year led to Penner re-evaluating his life course. Playing club circuits and working with mentally challenged kids followed, leading to a life in entertainment that keeps growing and growing. His newest project, a parenting book, is currently in the works.

"It will include images and stories from the road," said the real life dad. "It will talk about the way the communication of the music has worked for me and how parents can relate to that. I hope those stories become a part of the future family."

Family entertainment is only one segment of the music festival, with other genres working into the mix over the weekend of non-stop live music, including pop noire from Melissa McClelland and guitar acoustics from former Wide Mouth Mason frontman Shaun Verreault on Thursday, Aug. 10 starting at 4 p.m. Fred Penner follows on Friday, Aug. 11 at 4 p.m. along with organic house music from Velvet and fiddling from Shona Le Motte. Saturday, Aug. 12 welcomes the crooning sensation Matt Dusk at 6 p.m. The high-energy, all-girl band Lillix from Madonna’s Maverick record label takes the stage Sunday, Aug. 13 at 4 p.m., with The Paperboys closing out the festival with their acoustic-based rollicking roots music.

For more information, visit www.whistler.com/music.