Nothing is funnier to a kid than mess. The messier, the 'D gloppier, the sloppier . . . the better.
No one understands this as much, or makes as much money at it, as Nickelodeon, the children's cable channel. One of Nickelodeon's most popular game shows is "Double Dare," which spun off several other shows, including: "Family Double Dare," "What Would You Do?" and "Super Sloppy Double Dare."
The live show combining all of these comes to the Baltimore Arena tomorrow.
Even if your kids don't have access to cable, they know about "Double Dare." That's because of the merchandising (toys and gadgets, mostly) -- including canisters of Gak, so your kids can slime each other, just like on the show.
Your kids probably also know about "Double Dare" because of its legendary ability to find new ways to be messy. Since the show premiered about 10 years ago, the slime factor has increased exponentially. It used to be totally gross to stick your hands in a bowl of green mush. Today, the hit game on "Double Dare" is Pie Pod, where you sit in a barber's chair until Marc Summers, the show's host, launches the biggest whipped cream pie this side of Barney at you. Or how about the Pie Wash? That's where you spin around in a barber's chair as sliming elements are squirted at you, just as a giant brush arrives to rub in the substance.
This is why the live "Double Dare" shows are so popular -- kids, at last, get to experience the mess for themselves.
More than 80 kids will be picked from the audience to participate in Sunday's show.
What do you wear to an event like this?
"I recommend casual wear," says Cynthia Dartley, manager of Nickelodeon's live events, without a hint of sarcasm. "This is not a sit-and-watch show. The last thing I want to hear is, 'Omigosh, am I going to get messy?' Because oh, yes, you are going to go home with pie on your butt."
Excuse me? She's talking about the game "Pie on Your Butt," where you squish a pie on your derriere, run to the other end of the room and scrape off as much as possible into a bucket. The one who scrapes the most pie wins. You can see why the saying "Kids, don't try this at home" can't be said too many times.
The most popular games in the live shows are the ones involving parents. If kids love to slime each other, they are over-the-moon ecstatic when told they can slime their parents -- and not get in trouble for it. It's gloppy revenge for all the times Mom wiped your face.
Take, for example, the game "Feeding the Baby." You put Mom in a high chair, put on her bib, then fling balloons filled with water, mushed peas and carrots at her. If she's not too quick in catching those balloons . . . well, it's dinnertime for baby. Or, the "Obstacle Course," when Dad has to pick a giant, oozing
nose, to get the flag needed to win.
It's easy to see why parents love this stuff. No, really, they do, says Ms. Dartley. "When parents remember what being messy was like for a kid, how it was fun, then they love it. Parents like seeing what their kids like. It's a chance for kids to show their parents what their universe is like."
So, see Double Dare as an educational experience, Mom and Dad.
DOUBLE DARE
What: Nickelodeon's Family Double Dare
Where: Baltimore Arena
When: 1 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. tomorrow
Cost: $7.50, $9.50, $11.50 and $15.50
$ Call: (410) 481-SEAT