Life has never been as neat as a deck of cards. Neighborhood resident Sherry “Boo” Capers thinks that may be just the way to deal with it.
Creator of The Drama Decks, chosen this past year by the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio as a “Toy of the Year,” Capers is trying to purvey her idea that a little drama isn’t always bad.
“I believe drama is essential in a kid’s life,” Capers says. “The skills we develop through drama are the skills that give us the capacity to enjoy this life.”
A longtime teacher and owner of Capers for Kids, a learning studio where children can enact the subtleties of drama by acting out fictional situations, Capers recently decided it was time to mass-market the deck of cards she has been using for 23 years.
With things like “Turn off the TV and play!” and “There are no right or wrong answers, just hundreds of possible situations and characters to act out” stamped across them, the cards are about interaction, Caper says.
“The kids learn to work together as a team, and to accept everybody’s concepts and ideas. They learn that there is not just one right answer,” she says.
A former DISD teacher before opening her own venture, Capers says her employees “do a lot of study and research.” She says: I studied education, speech and drama in college, and I am very particular about who I hire to teach here. They must have experience with art or drama, and know how to work with kids from 3 years old to 18.”
After those essential building blocks are in place, however, fun is the order of the day.
“Everything in life does not have to have tremendous meaning,” she says. “It’s OK just to be fun.”
