Twelve-year-old Madison Maxwell has done hundreds of commercials, beginning when she was just 4.
But, the sixth-grader at Academy at the Lakes in Land O’ Lakes has never been involved in a television show.
Until now.
She’s one of nine cast members in a new series called “Kid Stew.”
The show was created by James Patterson, an internationally known author of books written for young readers.
Four episodes of “Kid Stew” have been filmed and four more episodes are slated for production this summer.
Each episode, which lasts 30 minutes, features humor, skits and a fast-paced delivery to provide an engaging approach to learning.
It’s been described as sort of a combination between a kid-friendly “Saturday Night Live” and the old PBS television show “Zoom,” said Sue Maxwell, who is Madison’s mom.
The cast members wear funny wigs, crazy facial hair and dress up like French waiters, sleazy record promoters, stuffy British TV hosts and famous historical characters, according to a news release.
The show will air locally, in a marathon scheduled for June 24 beginning at 9 a.m., on WEDU. It is being carried by more than 200 stations across the country.
Madison is involved in a recurring sketch, in which she and Blake McCall, another cast member, use a phone booth to travel back in time.
During those sketches, they visited Leonardo da Vinci, Cleopatra, Thomas Edison and Shakespeare, Madison said.
“That was very fun, except for the mosquitoes. I had 37 mosquito bites,” she said, noting the filming was done outdoors near a monastery, to give the time travel a historic feel.
Madison said it’s been fun to be in the show, and she was pleased to be selected for the cast. She found out about the auditions from her agent in Miami.
She said the show doesn’t require her to adopt an entirely new persona.
“It’s your name, and you get to act like yourself and you are your own character,” she said. “You can just be free.”
The episodes are shot in Miami, Boca Raton and Ft. Lauderdale area, with seven of the nine cast members coming from South Florida and the other two, including Madison, from the Tampa Bay area.
A news release describes the show this way: “‘Kid Stew’ celebrates imagination, and encourages children’s interest in reading, music, art and creative expression. Featuring comedic sketches, music videos, fun facts, virtual visits around the globe, and guest appearances from creative adults and kids alike, the series offers four, half-hour episodes packed with fun in a ‘for kids, by kids’ format that appeals to elementary school age viewers.”
The creator, Patterson, is known for his tween-targeted franchises, which include “Jacky Ha-Ha,” about a 12-year-old girl who loves to make people laugh.
‘Kid Stew’ is co-produced by South Florida PBS and Patterson, and presented nationally by South Florida PBS via American Public Television.
Madison is excited about filming the rest of Season 1 and hopes there will be a Season 2.
She’s not sure what she wants to do in the future. At one point, she wanted to be a dolphin trainer. More recently, she’s been thinking about being an orthodontist, or perhaps a neurosurgeon.
At this point, it’s too soon to tell.
Madison lives in Lutz with her mom, Sue; her dad, Mike; and, her grandfather, Ki Kim.
Published May 30, 2018
