Imagination Movers Surprise!!

As much as I'd like to take credit for our evening last night as though I'd had this surprise for Ethan all planned out for months and months.... I didn't. I got a generic email yesterday afternoon from the Portland Center for Performing Arts about upcoming events and didn't read it until about 5:15pm. Normally I just skim through it and then delete the email, if I even read it at all. Well, something just happened to catch my eye - 1/2 price tickets to Imagination Movers. Sweet! I love a good deal. Oh, wait... it's for tonight. Just when I was about to delete the email, I decided to run it by Sean. Long story short, we got Ethan ready and decided it was worth a shot. Of course, you could no longer by tickets online, so we had to cross our fingers that there were still tickets available at the box office. We got into downtown Portland at about 6:30pm and Sean dropped me off while he wen to find parking. Our tickets ended up being $49.50 for ALL 3! That's only $16.50 a ticket! And they were excellent seats - row L of the center section!! So, all this time we had not told Ethan where we were going - just that we had a surprise for him. As we got closer to the theater, I got nervous we wouldn't get tickets and had warned Ethan that the surprise was last minute and we may not be able to get in. I met up with Sean and Ethan after they parked the car and then we told Ethan the surprise - he was so excited!!We had about 15 minutes before the show started, so we let Ethan go ahead and take a picture in front of the backdrop they had set up. It was actually a pretty cool deal. They had kids-size Imagination Movers coveralls if they wanted to wear them and then they let the parents take the picture on a digital camera. When the show was over, you could pick up the pictures from a table. And the best part? It was free! They also gave Ethan a sticker and package of silly bandz.Alright, time for the show!! The opening act was Choo-Choo Soul w/ Genevieve and DC and as soon as they came out, Ethan was hooked. Huge grin on his face! He was so excited to see them in person! They did a great job of getting the kids excited and the crowd moving and singing along. Next up... IMAGINATION MOVERS!! Sean and I liked that the show was more of a concert - we thought it was going to be more like an episode of the show. They did a bunch of the favorites from the show and were good about coming down the aisles and really interacting with the kids.
Next up was a visit from Nina! She taught the kids a hula and that's when Ethan actually started to dance and participate a little more - he'd been a bit shy before.

{The part that is all black is when I tried to video Ethan singing/dancing along and then realized I was zoomed way in to video Nina onstage, so it was too dark.}

Warehouse Mouse came out next, then there was another "special guest" and then the finale, complete with confetti!

We had a great time!! The actual show was about an hour long, not including 15 minutes with Choo-Choo Soul and then a 15 minute "encore" set with some classic rock and pop songs - so an hour and a half. And, they said we were one of the best crowds they'd had yet - which was especially impressive for a Tuesday night! Ha ha!!After we picked up our picture in the lobby, guess who came out for a little meet-n-greet?! Genevieve and DC from Choo Choo Soul!
Yeah, this pretty much sealed the deal as Sean and I being awesome parents in our little Ethan's eyes. Ha ha! We had a great night! :)

I have to say, I have much more respect for them after seeing the show and hearing a little more of their story (check out their site) and knowing, now, that they started out as ordinary guys with jobs and families and that they are all friends - not actors. This is the 2011 tour, so it just started. In fact, for those in the "area" they are in Eugene tonight and then in Seattle on Friday.
Here's the link for the tour schedule: http://www.imaginationmovers.com/events
And here's a link to their site (it explains the free picture promo in "Featured News" section): http://www.imaginationmovers.com/