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New pizza parlor offers unique birthday parties for kidsBy Bev DavisFEATURES/LIFESTYLES EDITORatz is one cool gorilla. Bigger than life and with a voice to match, the giant ape taps his foot, rolls his eyes and never misses a beat on the keyboard.“Small children are afraid of him at first, but once they get used to him, they love him,” said Judy Hackney, who recently opened Stageshow Pizza in Beckley.Fatz and a cast of other animals like Mitzi Mouse, Looney Bird and Billy Bob are computerized entertainers whose movements are perfectly synchronized with a dozen songs which can be selected by children dining in the spacious former Heck’s location between Kroger and Big Lots on Harper Road.Hackney cues up a song by pressing one of 12 colorful buttons on a child-size show selector — a small jukebox of sorts.The curtains open, animals begin to move, and soon parents, kids owners and a newspaper reporter and photographer are singing along with “I Heard It Through the Grapevine.”“I think the adults enjoy the show more than the kids. It’s amazing to see this and realize what kind of technology makes it possible,” Hackney said.The “Rock-a-Fire Explosion has some special birthday numbers like, “There’s No Birthday Like Your Birthday.”Accomplished with air compression and computer chips,the “Rock-a-Fire Explosion” stageshow represents a $100,000 investment on the part of its owners, and the price tag includes a bevy of engineers armed with checklists who spent more than a week making sure every hand and eye movement was perfectly coordinated with the music.Although the stageshow provides the main attraction for this unique eatery, Hackney has included about 40 arcade games, some children’s rides and a variety of sandwiches, salads and desserts suited to children and adults alike.MR?-. •v'£.v, • ,'su mimml,,i . • f .'-Vimy '•Iw .. XttvM WmIC-:- v Vtheshewithplacesasstate,week; however, Stageshow is open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week.Menu items include salads, pastas, steak and chicken sandwiches, calzones and pita pockets stuffed with chicken.“We are trying to go low calorie on some things, because we know people are becoming more health-conscious,” Hackney said.Seasoned steak fries and sauces are among the specialcomplements with meals.With a seating capacity for about 200 people, the new restaurant was designed withI-¥mm'mChristopher Prelaz, 5, and Matthew Prelaz, 21/2, make some tough choices at one of the displays at Stageshow Pizza. With 40 arcade games geared to children, the unique eatery offers plenty of activities to keep children occupied and adults entertained at the same time.Paintings of The Little Mermaid and other Disney characters were done by local artistsDavid and Damon McDowell.Two paintings, however, proved to be a bit confusing for little visitors.“We thought it would be so cute to have Beauty and The Beast on the bathroom doors, but we’re going to have to change that. Little kids kept coming back to their parents and saying, ‘Mom, which bathroom do I go to?”’ Hackney said.“We want to specialize in children’s birthday parties. We have plenty of space, and the stageshow is free. It’s a good,Although Fatz, Biily Bob and the other stage performers seem amazingly real, their voices and movements are controlled by computers. Engineers spent more than a week synchronizing the movements for 12 songs, which will be changed each month. While many of thetunes are from the ‘60s, special birthday songs areincluded.
Newspaper Details
Beckley Register Herald
Beckley, West Virginia, US
Sun, May 28, 1995
Page 13
Full Page
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