Can the ABC children’s show survive another 60 years?
On a Wednesday morning in March, at ABC’s Studio 22, Play School hosts Zindzi Okenyo and Kaeng Chan perform Rock Any Time of the Day Again. And again. And again.
They are accompanied by a live band nearby, while the show crew sets up the disco-decorated set, pumping bubbles and taking breaks between takes; Maurice the teddy bear wearing a blue sequined vest and his canine sidekick Scrap wearing headphones.
The crew has been filming Party Series episodes for a week, celebrating the show’s 60th birthday on July 18. Play School – the under-fives and their teary-eyed parents – it’s literally presented as: Play School as always. But for eagle-eyed observer and series producer Bryson Hall, it’s not that big of a deal. Play School Classic like Play School Classic+.
“It’s a bit of a magic trick we’re doing,” Hall says. “Wherever people go, ‘Yes, this is Play School‘, because there are two presenters and things like that. But it has changed a little bit, but it is changing slowly.”
Filming now takes place on four different sets to capture four different sections rather than one continuous take, and the pace has increased significantly. Once considered offensive to preschool audiences, overhead shots of artwork have now become commonplace, and toys even pop out (my personal favorite: Little Ted’s Big Adventure). Instead of being scheduled Monday through Friday, episodes are now organized around a theme like dinosaurs, the beach, or our senses.
“Preschoolers are now fully literate, their screen literacy is beyond ours,” says Hall, who has been working on the series since 2018. [to the show’s early days]You had to start with a wide shot of the person’s full body so that children wouldn’t be afraid of close-ups. [thinking it was half a person].”
Real Play School It is no coincidence that it is now in its seventh decade. Even though he was powered by nostalgia, he never stood still. First broadcast in black and white in 1966 and hosted by Alister Smart and Dianne Dorgan, the program is now one of the most diverse and inclusive programs on Australian television, featuring presenters from a wide range of backgrounds and diverse talents. More than 20 years ago, it showcased gay parenting with an episode of Via Windows in which two mothers went on a trip with their eight-year-old daughters, and in 2016 it featured two gay fathers.
It has included children from indigenous and immigrant backgrounds and has long advocated caring for the environment, not only by recycling materials in craft projects (those of you who haven’t turned a toilet roll into a tree) but also by learning to care for habitats and animals.
In short, it made its mark. Not just for its viewers, but for its presenters as well.
“I always think it’s wonderful and embarrassing. Play School “It is the most diverse show on Australian television,” says Okenyo, who has been part of the presenting team since 2013. “Yes, it’s optics, but there’s often a lot of talk about representing Australia.” [on screen]but still we don’t do this.
“But I think what’s special about it is Play Schooland what other programs lack in terms of diversity is the understanding that we really need it. [diversity] we always need it and it needs to evolve, and if there is a gap, you need to fill that gap, but you need to do it in a truly sincere way, not just because you’re told to.
“And because I’ve been in the program for 12 years, I’ve met kids that are 10-11 years old and I’ve met those brown kids and those African kids, they get it. [the diversity]but the parents say, ‘Thank you.’ Even refugees [who say] ‘When we moved to Australia we didn’t speak English and this was a show we watched and my kids felt at home because they saw you.’ “It’s incredibly powerful and this can and should happen on Australian television.”
In fact, Okenyo was in the same situation when he was a young fan. Play School and watching former host Trisha Goddard.
“He was probably watching Trish, an Afro-British woman – who is also an amazing journalist – [but it was] “This is exactly representation,” says Okenyo, whose father is from Kenya, and adds: “Honestly, as a child, I didn’t think of this as representation. But he was so natural and stupid. And so I think I definitely try to channel that.
for all Play School But Hall says work needs to be done to promote diversity. “We recently held a workshop on diversity inclusion; people with disabilities Play School“It was incredible and eye-opening,” he says. “It was something we all said: ‘Well, it’s just a thing.’ Play School segment’, very natural, no different from normal.”
For Chen, who has been presenting on the program since 2013, Play School The show’s biggest trump card and biggest trump card in terms of being future-ready is its connection to its young audience.
“There is something about keeping up with the times, but there is also still holding on to the essence of what created it. Play School, Play Schoolsettlement and connection,” says Chen. “And this also goes hand in hand with the advancement of society. But we really have to be careful not to go too far [with change] This alienates children from home.”
Okenyo agrees too Play School to the work of revered Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki. “He was talking about if you follow the child’s rhythm and his emotional level, if you follow that tempo and keep him small and quiet, there’s no need for action, so there’s no need for drama to happen,” Okenyo says. “It moves at their pace… and it has a big emotional impact, which is really important for kids’ emotional complexity and creating this landscape.”
And meanwhile ‘Play School’His 60th birthday is an event to be celebrated, whether he can last another 60 years or even reach 100 in 40 years is a big question. Its budget was cut and the number of episodes it produced each year was reduced. According to a recent RMIT report, the ABC has seen a 59 per cent drop in hours of new content aimed at children in Australia since 2018-2019. It also ignores streamers, YouTube, and any AI trends.
But Hall is optimistic. Despite the increase in streaming over the last 10 years, especially when Netflix and Disney+ have hundreds of hours of programs for children, he says: Play School Viewerships increased on both free-to-air and ABC iview.
“I’m not sure there’s another show Australian audiences can trust more than this one. Play School” says Hall. “And part of that is [growing the audience] It’s just about maintaining that trust and being an AI-free zone. I think parents would really want that, and I can already see that happening even with things on YouTube, short animations, and things that fascinate a kid, but not in a very good way.
“And I think parents and caregivers are really getting on board with this now and are coming back to similar programs.” Play School They have a fun, charming nature but they have a really good educational foundation.
Ironically, nostalgia will also play a big role. Play School future. This is not disruptive power, but parental power.
“Parents and caregivers who want to monitor Play School “They have good memories with their kids because they have good memories of it,” Hall says. “So it’ll be interesting to see how well that goes because, frankly, between that generation and the next generation, they would have had so many other options and there would have been so many things they watched and Play School It will only be a small part of it. Frankly, a lot of this was from 20 or 30 years ago, just depending on the amount of content available at the time.
“Nostalgia is hard to fulfill. It’s a responsibility I feel like I have; you want to continue to adapt, move forward a little bit. If someone comes along and turns on you Play School and says: ‘Oh, that’s not it Play School I remember’ or whatever, then the parents will shut down.
“So a small part of this is for the parent. As long as the child has a heart. Play School it is still there and it is. And meanwhile Play School What they watch today will be very different from before. Play School Before, the heart of it was what people connected with and kept coming back to.”
Play School It airs Monday through Friday on ABC Kids. Party Series episodes are now streaming on ABC iview.
