Pops tots
Shush the audience? Not at these Symphony Hall shows.
Up onstage, the conductor, in red shirt and suspenders, led the orchestra in a Christmas medley. Near the back of the house, Thomas Pino just had to dance. So he headed to the aisle, stomped his feet, and twirled to the music.
Normally, this kind of behavior is frowned on in Symphony Hall. But not last Saturday morning, as the Boston Pops launched its first series of holiday concerts especially for kids. The ushers didn't even flinch as Thomas, who's 2 1/2 years old, took his mother's hand to skip through ''O Come, All Ye Faithful."
''For years, people with younger children have been asking us if there was a way to shorten the concert a little bit and have a program a little more oriented toward children," said Kim Noltemy, sales and marketing director for the Pops and Boston Symphony Orchestra. ''Then there are some people who are coming and they don't want to have the distraction of children who are young and can't be quiet and can't really understand what's going on onstage."
For more photos on the Boston Pops program for kids, go online to: boston.com/yourlife
The kids shows continue with sold-out concerts today and tomorrow; there will be a total of seven in the series. These shows differ considerably from the other 32 holiday Pops concerts that run through the end of the year. For the kids, the programs lean away from narrations and toward singalongs. The menu, a feature at all Pops shows, has been changed to include peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, ice cream, and cookies. Crayons and coloring pages adorn the tables on the Symphony Hall floor.
Also, instead of a two-hour show with an intermission, the kids shows run 70 minutes with no break.
''Once you've got them there and captured, they can sit for more than an hour," said Pops conductor Keith Lockhart, whose son, 2-year-old Aaron, was at last Saturday's concert. ''With an intermission, you get them making noise for 20 minutes, and it's hard to get them back in the flow."
Noltemy said that surveys taken by Pops ticket-sellers show that parents are more comfortable bringing younger children to Symphony Hall than in the past. Some parents at last Saturday's concert said they were particularly glad that they wouldn't have to worry about disturbing ticket-buyers who don't have children.
''You can't complain about the kids today because you knew what you were getting into," said Phil Tinmouth, who was standing in a hallway to give his 13-month-old son, Julian, a break from the music.
Sue and Doug Thompson brought their three kids, Natalie, 7, Isabel, 5, and John, 3. The Hingham couple have been coming to Holiday Pops concerts since Natalie was a baby, but they said they found Saturday's show more enjoyable.
''I can remember in years past seeing a family of kids who were older, say in their late teens, doing well, and our kids sitting behind kicking the chairs and people getting annoyed," Doug said. ''This was much more relaxed."
Except for the occasional cry, the noise was minimal from the crowd during last Saturday's show. The kids clapped through several songs, shouted with pleasure when Santa entered the house, and laughed as Lockhart lifted a boy onto the stage to conduct.
The new program wasn't perfect, though, said Julie Pino, Thomas's mom. She thought ''The Snowman," a narrated story that runs for more than 20 minutes, dragged on too long. Thomas got bored.
''It didn't hold his attention, and as I looked around the room I noticed a lot of the kids had lost interest after a few minutes," she said.
But overall, Pino said, the length of the concert was perfect.
''Anything longer would have been too much for him," she said.
The Boston Pops present matinee shows for kids today and tomorrow at 11 a.m. (both are sold out) and Monday through Thursday at 4 p.m. at Symphony Hall. 888-266-1200, www.bso.org
Geoff Edgers can be reached at gedgers@globe.com. 