11-year-old is set to Ignite Boise | Boise, Garden City, Mountain Home | Idaho Statesman
An 11-year-old Boise girl is joining the wild night of creativity known as Ignite Boise. Mia McLenna will be among 15 presenters on Thursday, Oct. 21, at the Egyptian Theatre.
Get inspired. Get creative. Get on stage.
That’s the slogan of Ignite Boise — a fun, free-for-all event in which Treasure Valley residents give five-minute presentations on any topic.
And this time around, one 11-year-old Boise girl has heeded the call.
Mia McLenna has been selected as one of 15 presenters at the fifth edition of Ignite Boise on Oct. 21. The sixth-grader is charting new territory.
”We’ve never had a kid present before,“ said Chris Blanchard, one of the organizers behind the volunteer-run event. Blanchard said the girl’s proposal got the highest number of votes from judges, who reject more than half of all submissions.
She’ll be speaking to a full house of about 750 at the Egyptian Theatre. Her topic: ”What my monsters do while I’m at school.“
”I’m almost done with the script,“ McLenna said Friday.
One storyline she shared: A monster and his pet (the Loch Ness Monster) are at the lake discussing ”the biggest human they’ve ever caught in the lake“ and ”how they want to be in the exact same spot when they grow older because they like it so much.“
The inaugural Ignite Boise was in March last year — and it was such a hit, two more were scheduled before year’s end; a fourth was held in April.
Blanchard said it costs about $2,000 to stage Ignite Boise, including free T-shirts handed out to the first 100 attendees and a luncheon for the presenters. They haven’t had to solicit sponsors.
”They hand us money,“ Blanchard said of 10 available sponsorships (each $300). ”We’ve never looked for a nickel.“
McLenna said she and her dad attended the third and fourth Ignites.
”I liked it much better the second time,“ she said. ”I kind of knew what was going to happen, and I liked the presenters.“
The format is fast-paced: presenters have just 5 minutes, and they must have 20 slides (which rotate every 15 seconds).
McLenna is not someone who loves talking in front of large groups, but she decided she had to try it after seeing the ”Revenge of the Nerds“ presentation in April by Boise library assistant Megan Egbert.
”It took me a few days to find out what I wanted to do,“ McLenna said. She has made 17 claymation monsters and has begun shooting videos.
”I don't think I could ever do what she is doing,“ said Mia’s dad, Mike McLenna. ”I am the most proud dad there is.“
McLenna is a student at Adams Elementary School, where her favorite classes are math and science. She likes to ride her skateboard — around her neighborhood — and playing soccer.
”I mostly play offense or goalie,“ said McLenna, who has played soccer since she was 5.
She’s not your everyday ”tween.“ She’s not a fan of Justin Bieber (”he sounds like a girl“). Her favorite groups: The Flaming Lips, The Weepies and The Black Eyed Peas.
McLenna said she’s invited two friends from school to come see her present at Ignite Boise 5.
”Mia is going to be great,“ Blanchard said. ”What I think is awesome is, if you’re afraid of speaking in public, look at the soul of a child.
”She’s going to get up and talk about her clay monsters, and it’s going to be totally fun,“ Blanchard said.
Katy Moeller: 377-6413
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