Following the success of a silent movie night back in June at the Saenger Theater as part of this year’s Festival South activities – during which organists accompanied the movies on the theater’s resident organ – officials from the American Guild of Organists brainstormed a way to hold a similar holiday event for children at that location.
To that end, “The Super Saenger Singalong” was held December 11 at the theater on Forrest Street in downtown Hattiesburg, where approximately 900 children from area schools – spread throughout two groups – participated in a Christmas song singalong, accompanied by the Saenger’s 778-pipe Robert Morgan organ. Participating schools included the 3-D School in Petal, Sacred Heart and Presbyterian Christian School, among others.
“We thought this would be great for children who maybe have never seen the theater, or heard the organ before,” said Doug Rust, who served as an organist at the event and also is the associate director for the School of Music at the University of Southern Mississippi. “So that was the whole idea behind it, and then we just met and programmed what we would do, piece by piece.
“This was kind of new to us, and we didn’t really know who to call or how to get school children to come, so we reached out to the Hattiesburg Arts Council, because they have events in the Saenger that involve children. They gave us a list of contacts that they’ve used in the past, so we called all of those people and basically went from there, to see how we could do our first time out, and I think there was a lot more interest than we thought.”
The “Super Saenger Singalong,” which was presided over by Meredith Johnson of the voice faculty at Southern Miss, featured four organists who played various Christmas staples for the children to sing along to. That started with “Jingle Bells” and “Deck the Halls.”
After that, members from each school were able to give requests as to which songs they wanted to hear and participate in, such as “Feliz Navidad” and “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.”
“It was a lot of fun; Dr. Johnson has a lot of experience working with children, and so she had a lot of energy out there, and got (all the children) to respond to her,” Rust said. “They did some cheers, like ‘when I say merry, you say Christmas.’
“When you get 800 kids in a room yelling ‘Christmas’ all at once, that’s kind of big, so it was a pretty lively atmosphere. I was really surprised by it – since we didn’t offer anything CGI or anything digital, I didn’t know if the kids would respond to a traditional program. But I think they had a great time … and I think a lot of that credit has to go to (Johnson), because she’s really high energy and understands kids well.”
After the singalong, Johnson then read to the children “Over the River and Through the Wood,” a children’s book by Lydia Maria Child that recounts a family’s trip to their grandfather’s house. The children were then treated to “The Insects’ Christmas,” a 1913 silent film by Russian director Wladyslaw Starewicz in which a Father Christmas ornament climbs down from a decorated tree and invites the nearby forest creatures to enjoy the season.
“(The children) loved it and had a great time, and the teachers thought it was very interactive,” said Donna George, who serves as principal at the 3-D School. “As principal, I thought it was great that we were celebrating together with other schools in our community with traditional Christmas carols, that some of our students aren’t being taught these days.
“We also enjoyed just hearing about the history of the organ and the Saenger Theater
The Robert Morgan organ was built in 1929, but had fallen into disrepair by the early 1970s. In 1972, it was purchased by a Meridian resident, who installed the piece in his home.
In 1980, the organ was bought back, repaired and returned to the Saenger.
“Someone that worked at the theater really wanted the organ for the theater, and so (that person) was instrumental in bringing the organ there,” Rust said.
