PROGRAM NOTES

WRITTEN BY JIM LOPRESTI

Watch parents mirroring their child’s delight at running into Mickey or Snow White or the “princess sisters” from Frozen walking down Disney’s Main Street. It is likely that the world of imagination born decades before, shaped and colored by Disney, never left some secret and powerful corner of their adult brain.

TODAY: Hearing Disney stories and songs from films like Peter Pan [You Can Fly] or The Princess and the Frog [Dig a Little Deeper] and classics from Disney World [It’s a Small World] has the power to awaken soul-cleansing imagination. That is if we heed Walt Disney’s advice: “Never stop dreaming; never stop wishing.” There are many reasons to be grateful for this chance to recapture a fresh look at a world that can be. Is it escapism? Perhaps. It all depends on where we go from there. One person’s escape is another’s recharge. Understand that improbable heroes and heroines facing seemingly insurmountable obstacles equipped with determination are the heart of the matter in the world of Disney. It is time again to recall what it is like to “wish upon a star… and do as dreamers do.” To dig deep and believe it “makes no difference who you are.” We can hear afresh Mulan’s plea: “When will my reflection show who I am inside?’ And take to heart the timeless message that “there’s so much that we share, that it’s time we’re aware it’s a small world after all.” They all speak to the child who, according to Walt Disney and the great 19th century poet, “is father of the man.” In some significant ways, it has made this aging man better.