Thinking of Taking Your Child to a Concert? Read This First!

3

Fresh Beat BandA few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of taking my 3-year-old to see one of her favorite TV shows live and in person, The Fresh Beat Band. For those of you who don’t know, The Fresh Beat Band is a show on Nickelodeon about four friends who sing and dance and solve problems together. It reminds me of a modern-day Kids Incorporated, and while I find the catchy tunes and overacting a little annoying, I totally get the appeal to preschoolers. So when I found out that they were coming to DFW in the flesh, I sucked it up and bought tickets. My daughter would not have known that she was missing out on anything if I had decided not to take her, but she’s growing up so fast, and I know she won’t get excited about things like this forever. I also thought, “Hey, at least it’s not Yo Gabba Gabba.”

If you, too, are thinking about taking your child to see a live act, I’ve compiled a list of ten Dos and Don’ts for you based on this experience. Please heed my advice.

  1. DO stay on top of upcoming events and buy tickets right away. Even if it’s months out, and you’re not sure you can make it, you can always sell them. But if you wait until you’re sure you can go, you’re guaranteed a 100-200% markup per ticket. I learned this lesson the hard way, and I bought them in July. If the option is available, consider buying VIP passes to get up close and meet the band. Just know that if you opt out (they’re expensive), make sure to prepare a really good lie to explain to your child why he/she can’t be in front of the stage like the other kids. To help you stay on top of these types of events, I scoured the internet from top to bottom, and the best site I found is Eventful.
  2. DON’T tell your  husband that I am the one who pointed you to this site.
  3. DO invite a friend… for you and for the kid. Going with a friend provides them with a shared experience that they can bond over for years to come. It also gives them someone to sing and dance with so you don’t have to. And having a second adult allows you to do fun things, too… like go to the bathroom by yourself for once.
  4. DON’T tell them about it until the week of the event… and possibly even the day of. I told my daughter on Monday morning, and she asked about going to it no less than ten times a day until we actually arrived at the show. Now I’m no math genius, but had I told her about the show when I purchased the tickets, I estimate that she would have asked me about it roughly one million times.

    Cinderella and Sophia see the Fresh Beats
    Cinderella and Sophia see the Fresh Beats
  5. DO let them dress up. Why not? I thought it would be cute for my daughter to dress up as one of the Fresh Beats, but she opted to go as Sophia instead. This ended up working out better anyway… because I didn’t have to do anything.
  6. DON’T let them skip a nap. I don’t care if they’re 10. Make. Them. Sleep. The tickets are expensive, and the shows are short, so if your child starts losing steam halfway through it, you’ve just doubled the cost per minute of those tickets.
  7. DO get there early. I know this is just general common sense, and I’m sure you all get everywhere with plenty of time to spare, but I cannot emphasize this enough. Should you find yourself running low on time, Murphy’s Law will inevitably kick in, and you will find yourself facing stop-and-go traffic FOR NO REASON WHATSOEVER on a Friday evening.
  8. DON’T wait until intermission to buy booze. I repeat. DO NOT wait until intermission to buy booze… because they stop selling it by then. If my warning of unexpected traffic was not enough to get you to leave your house early, then this surely will do the trick.
  9. DO go ahead and buy a light-up thingy before the show. Otherwise, your child will spend the first half asking you for one, as all the other kids wave theirs around in the dark just to mock you. And if you wait until intermission to get one, you’ll have to stand in an obscenely long line doing the pee-pee dance with the rest of the suckers. You don’t have to get the fanciest one… anything that has the potential to cause epileptic seizures will do the trick.
  10. DON’T forget to get a picture. Time flies, and before you know it, your child will be too cool to dress up as a princess and sing and dance with no inhibitions. There may be a day when your child prefers to dress up in all black to go see the newest heavy metal band as a small act of rebellion, and you will want this picture to look back on. Just don’t forget the tissues.
DON'T forget to take a picture
To remind you that she used to love being a princess

What other events have you taken your kids to? 

3 COMMENTS

  1. I’m the mom who hears about FBB concerts 4 seconds before they are start and am like, “next year!!!!” and then miss it again the next year!!! PS. Every Thanksgiving weekend Uverse gives us back our u200 plan. Last year I thought it was a thanksgiving miracle, but this year I knew they were just trying to lure me into paying them $75 monthly for Nick Jr. I DVR’ed two episodes of Yo Gabba Gabba and the songs don’t stick in your head as badly bc they are nonsense and cool bands cameo and sing actual songs….something to consider (I used to knock YGG but next years during Thanksgiving Miracle 2014, I’ll DVr that crap all 4 days).

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here