Parenting and being a child can both be so much fun! Tom Knowles and Jed Parsons (aka Jeff Parsnips) certainly make it so. Their thoroughly entertaining show All the Things I Wish I Could Be is part of the Taranaki 2025 Reimagine Festival, and played on October 11.

Dressed in a uniform of matching grey rugby jerseys, denim shorts, striped ankle socks, sneakers and bum bags, the two performers look like overgrown ‘kids’ themselves. They are in fact both Dads and they certainly know how to take children and adults on a fantastic musical adventure.

As the audience files into the Theatre Royal to take their seats, the duo stand at the door greeting folk and giving them high fives. You immediately sense you are going to be in for a fun experience with this friendly, mischievous pair.

I attend with a Very Important Person (a VIP aged seven). She tells me before the show that she might, or might not, become a singer when she is older. She knows she is going to help me out by telling me all the good and bad things about this performance from a younger person’s perspective or point of view. This is a concept she knows and understands.

Amidst a blaze of colour, the 30+ year old men leap around the stage and perform moves such as a clumsy handstand and goofy, contrived dance actions. Many Dad jokes have us giggling. There are drum rolls and catchy songs with silly, but oh so clever rhyming couplets. Plenty of hilarious pranks abound. Long lists with striking sketches and blackboards with clever chalk drawings catch the eye. Amusing props like headlights, fishing rods and a chocolate muffin covered in tomato sauce make young and old laugh a lot. Fun costuming includes whirly hats, monkey ears and even a pile of poo!

There’s lots of audience interaction. Some parents even find themselves holding their youngsters upside down by their feet! Overall, there is heaps of hilarity and laughter for both children and adults. The wonderful guitar playing and quirky songs soon have both of us clapping, singing along with gusto, waving our hands, shouting out raucously, chanting and laughing lots. After all, Tom and Jeff have a cheeky, infectious enthusiasm about them.

The songs are fun and through them we explore many possibilities of what we might be. We could be an inventor, an All Black, a ballerina, a cricket player, or maybe a dinosaur, a bee, a butterfly, a cheeky monkey or even a scary monster. With the witty lyrics of their songs Tom and Jeff make them all possible options. 

We also meet Tom’s elderly Mum. It is Jeff dressed up in a wig with a walking stick. She lets slip that there is a moral to the show-a lesson for us all to learn. Both adults and children sit up to listen and we discover that the most important thing is to just be you and to be happy.

A delightful scene with the song ‘Dad Wants to Be’ subtly inserts a more serious message for the adults. They hear that while they want to be a coach to their child, they can’t live their own dreams through the next generation. We are reminded that love is the special ingredient that grows the best person we can be. 

As the show finishes, Tom and Jeff move around the audience with a mirror. They reinforce the message that we should be happy just to be who we are. My wise VIP catches onto this instantly. Post show, she tells me the performance has been very funny and that she just wants to be herself.

She comments that the show is probably more suited to preschoolers. However, she also discovers how the important message she is taking away from the show about being herself may have been missed by younger audience members who eagerly tell us they still want to be a zookeeper or a dinosaur. My VIP, who knows about perspectives, realises everyone has seen and enjoyed the show from their own perspective and age level. That’s a lesson in itself.

Like me, she realises that it doesn’t matter at all. Both adults and children have all had a barrel of fun. With the words of songs still ringing in our heads we head off happily with some of us remembering a lesson or two as well.

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It’s school holidays in Wellington, and Tom Knowles and Jeff Parsons (performing as ‘Jeff Parsnips’) take to the Circa Theatre stage with its latest children’s offering, All The Things I Wish I Could Be: a 45-minute musical adventure that is a celebration of possibility, identity and good old-fashioned silliness.

The premise is simple but engaging: two dads mucking about, dreaming up the many things they (and we) might one day become. A ballerina? A monster? A dog? An All Black? The show takes us through these and more, with each idea sparking a new song, costume or cheeky gag.

Knowles and Parsons have excellent comic chemistry and a relaxed rapport with the audience. The live musical performance is a highlight — original songs are catchy, well-crafted and often hilarious, with subtle nods for adults tucked among the big beats for kids.

The production design is simple but effective, relying on props, costume bits and creative lighting to transform the small space. It never feels bare — instead, the minimalism allows the performers’ energy and inventiveness to shine. Audience interaction is encouraged throughout, with the crowd clapping, singing, and even shouting out suggestions (which the performers deftly fold into the action).

While clearly aimed at the under-10s, the show never talks down to its audience. Themes of friendship, creativity, and self-expression are gently woven through the fun. There’s a heartfelt moment or two, but nothing too heavy—just the right balance for a lively holiday outing.

Special mention must be made of the relaxed and accessible showings, including a ‘Jams & Prams’ performance and a fully ‘Unplugged’ version. It’s great to see family theatre being made not just for young people but also with their diverse needs in mind.

All The Things I Wish I Could Be is a joyful, proudly local production that hits the mark. Funny, fast-paced, and full of heart, it’s a reminder that sometimes the best thing you can be is exactly who you are—plus a little bit silly.

Luna Rama (aged 9)

All The Things I Wish I Could Be was really funny. They had a giant picture for their set which was really cool. I liked all of the songs it had. There was a biscuit with tomato sauce on it that one of the guys ate! I liked how the lights changed for what they were doing – when they sang Tomato Tamiti, it turned red for tomato sauce.  

In the middle of the show the ‘mum’ came in and said the moral of the show early. And then said “Oh no, and there’s 33 minutes left!” The moral was you can be anything you want to be, just be yourself.

At the end they were like, “Who is this guy in the mirror?” – haha. It’s really funny. If you like dad jokes, and good music you should go see this play.

Dev Rama (aged 6)

All The Things I Wish I Could Be was about being able to be anything you want to be. Tom and Jeff, they played songs – one was about someone who loved tomato sauce. After a few seconds later, Tom came out with a chocolate biscuit. He got out tomato sauce and he put it on the biscuit and then Jeff ate the biscuit, and it was gross! Tom’s ‘mum’ was in the play. She sang a song about what Tom will be when he’s older, with Tom.

When Tom was five years old, he wrote a list of things he could be. There was a lot! It was very funny.

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