Playing Inside
Reinventing the Glass Slipper
It’s Monday evening at the British School of Beijing’s Sanlitun campus. The cast of Beijing Playhouse are practicing for the premiere of their upcoming show, Cinderella. Choreographer Emma Orr and Musical Director Tanya Davies guide the rehearsal like drill sergeants. The music is punctuated by orders of “No talking in the front row!” or “I don’t want to see limp arms!”
Beijing Playhouse’s first show was a theater adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol in 2006. Since then, Beijing Playhouse (BP) has performed such Broadway favorites as Guys and Dolls, You Can’t Take It With You, and The Odd Couple. Over 100 cast and crew members are involved in each production, which typically take 18 months to put together.
Get Movin’
Cold winds in Beijing might be brewing, but that’s no reason to stay cooped up indoors. The capital offers some of the most exciting and entertaining options for exercise – for both adults and kids – so don’t retreat to your couch just yet! Lace up your sneakers and join one of Beijing’s many fitness activities.
Swimming
A 300-strong international swim team, Dragon Fire Swim Team provides training and instruction according to FINA requirements. Annual swim camps are offered for kids; there’s even a Baby Swim class for 3- to 4-year-old swimmers. There are also master classes for adults. During the swim season, training is offered seven days a week at four different locations (Canadian International School, British School of Beijing, Beijing Rego British School and Western Academy of Beijing).
All Fired Up
Right next to the busy corner of Guanghua Lu and Dongdaqiao Lu, there’s an oasis of calm tucked inside the fifth floor of the Guanghualu SOHO. Within its small, well-lit confines, the walls of Funky Pots Beijing are lined with different shapes and sizes of unglazed pottery: teapots, high heels, treasure chests, piggy banks, ice cream cones, and more. Even on a late Friday afternoon, there is no trace of the frenetic hustle and bustle of the city.
The premise of the Paint Your Own Pottery (PYOP) studio is simple: customers pick out and paint a bisque (the proper term for plain ceramic pottery), which is then glazed and fired by the studio. The finished product is ready for pickup a week later.
Little Explorers
This year from September 9 to 30, The Bookworm will hold its Explore: Science and Ideas Festival. “The bookstore will be turned into a natural history museum,” Festival Director Kadi Hughes explains. There will be a seven-meter triceratops among other things. And best of all, “They will also get to make their own fossils and get dirty,” she adds. Along with creating fossils and prehistoric creatures from molds, aspiring paleontologists will get a chance to have their dinosaur questions answered – while budding historians can reminisce with Beijing Postcards’ collection of vintage photographs. Packed with inspirational talks and movie showings, the festival is sure to captivate inquisitive minds. Read on for exclusive interviews with Beijing transportation history buff Lars Thom, replica specialist Ludovic Blein and dinosaur expert Damien Leloup. And be sure to mark your calendars; you don’t want miss this.
Hotel Havens
Westin Beijing Financial Street
The Westin Beijing Financial Street prides itself on its family-friendly features. With a dedicated Kids Club open daily, let the kids have fun while you relax in the spa or enjoy a romantic long lunch. Not to be missed is the brunch that started them all: Bubbly Sundays.
Room rate: Approx RMB 2,600+15%, RMB 200+15% (additional single bed), free (crib). Prices vary, so call ahead for the best rates.
Restaurants: Jewel serves Chinese cuisine. Plush has snacks. Prego offers Italian cuisine. Senses serves international cuisine. Daily Treats offers basic deli foods.
Brunches: Bubbly Sundays at Senses. Sundays 11.30am-3pm. RMB 369+15% (free-flow champagne), RMB 148+15% (kids 6-12), free (kids 6 and under).
For kids: Westin Kids Club is open daily 9am-6pm. Babysitting service available, 24-hour notice required. A kids menu is available in all restaurants.
Action-Packed O'le
Nestled between Beijing's East Third and Fourth Ring Roads lies the O'le Sports Center. Here, young athletes have their pick from an array of sports: rock climbing, football (soccer), badminton, basketball, skiing, children's playgroups, and rollerblading. At 1,300sqm, the center's main building was an old factory that has since been renovated. It is now home to the O'le Italian Football School, O'le Climbing, O'le Rollerblading and Fun Gym. Next door is O'le's badminton and basketball courts. With high quality facilities, experienced coaches and a friendly atmosphere, your kids will be top athletes in no time.
Little Bookworms: The Kid Program at the Bookworm International Literary Festival
The Bookworm International Literary Festival has been Beijing's major literary event for the past four years and it gets bigger every year. "Every year we try and include more and more voices - not just American voices, not just British voices," says Festival Director Kadi Hughes. "This year, [the festival will] have writers from places like Iceland, Nigeria, Italy and Argentina, [in addition to] Australia, the US, the UK, Scotland and of course, China," she adds. But beyond bringing writers from all backgrounds to Beijing, one of the most rewarding parts at the festival is the positive impact on young writers. Hughes recalls, "Last year, one of the slam poets was very inspiring to older kids and they started writing poetry. It's so great to have kids partake in these events [and] continue writing themselves." This year's festival runs from March 4 to 18 and their jam-packed children's program makes this event more family-friendly than ever before. Three of the festival's featured children's authors - Andri Magnason, Shamini Flint and Yang Hongying - took time out to chat with beijingkids about their latest books.
What's Fun In: China Science and Technology Museum
Enormous not only in size, but also in educational fun, the China Science and Technology Museum will satisfy the thinker in children and adults alike. You can easily spend up an afternoon walking through four themed floors and nine different galleries. Once you've had your fill of the museum itself, check out the massive children's play center Science Paradise. Containing countless hands-on exhibits and displays, the museum provides children with a healthy mix of information and entertainment that will leave them wanting to know more. Mind-boggling exhibits and topics on the third and fourth floors can even kindle the Einstein in parents as well. Perfect on cold and dreary winter's day, the museum is a fun indoor haven for the whole family.
Prima Ballerina
Ballet is the foundation of all dances," says founder and director of J-Ballet Studio, Japanese Junko Takeda. It is also a must for anyone studying figure skating or gymnastics, she adds. Takeda beganstudying ballet a year after arriving in Beijing in 1997. She attended weekend classes at Beijing Dance Academy, where her 18-year-olddaughter now studies ballet. While Takeda is not a professional dancer, she founded J-BalletStudio in 2004 after seeing the lack of balletclasses for young children. Following the popular Russian Vaganova style of ballet, J-Ballet Studio is where children can learn the beauty and grace of ballet in a fun, welcoming environment.
