Mary Lascaris Hi-5 House Interview

Mary Lascaris Hi-5 House Interview

Nick Jr. is bringing high energy adventure, singing and dancing to weekday mornings! Australia's favourite five- some preschool group, Hi-5 return to Aussie screens for season fourteen in Hi-5 House. Premiering Monday November 4th at 9.30am, the 25X30min format series will continue to air weekdays at 9.30am on Nick Jr. available only on Foxtel.

Hi-5 House will provide a stimulating variety of visual, aural and kinaesthetic experiences that cater to children's individual learning styles in a bright and energetic environment, the new Hi-5 House! Here, favourite Hi-5-er's Stevie Nicholson and Lauren Brant as well as three new cast members, Mary Lascaris, Ainsley Melham and Dayen Zheng will invite audiences to play along and learn through curricular activities based on music, movement and laughter.

'We're really excited to be the first territory to premiere Hi-5 House and bring this much loved group to a generation of new fans. The show is a perfect fit for our channel and brings to life our -play along and learn' philosophy" said Hugh Baldwin, Director of Television and Digital Content, Nickelodeon Australia.

"Hi-5's fresh format has a few new surprises. I'm confident that our fans will find tuning into the show the best play date ever. The new cast line up and exciting new look are sure to delight" said Julie Green, Executive Producer, Hi-5 House.

'It's an honour to be a member of Hi-5. If I have learnt one thing during my time with the group it's that children, no matter where in the world they are from, just want to have fun. I'm very proud of the work that we do" said Stevie Nicholson.

'I'm so grateful for this opportunity. I'm doing what I love and I can't wait to see all the little smiling faces and look forward to bringing a whole lot of fun to the Hi-5 family!" added Mary Lascaris.

In each episode, the all Aussie cast will explore five key educational concepts; visual and spatial awareness, linguistic and aural skills, logical thinking and mathematics, musicality, as well as physical and motor development. Old friends Jup Jup and Chatterbox will make regular appearances and new friends will be introduced, including a robot named Tinka. In a brand new segment 'The Chatterbox" fans will meet bookworms Aristotle and Horace as they, along with Chatterbox (or Chats as she's affectionately known) explore English words and phrases in hilarious adventures. In episode one Explore My Space pre-schoolers will explore the new Hi-5 house with the group and will be invited to help them unpack!

Interview with Mary Lascaris

Question: What should audiences expect from Hi-5 House?

Mary Lascaris: A brand new feel and style to Hi-5! From a new cast, new sets, new songs; it's a new Hi-5 for a new generation of kids!


Question: Where was Hi-5 House filmed?

Mary Lascaris: In Singapore!


Question: What did you enjoy most about this experience?

Mary Lascaris: I loved learning about all the work that goes on behind the scenes. You don't realise how many people are involved! It is a real team effort and it has been great making so many new friends worldwide!


Question: Can you talk us through how you recently joined Hi-5?

Mary Lascaris: The whole audition process was actually filmed into a movie that was out earlier this year at Hoyts called 'Some Kind of Wonderful'. It was a 3 day intense audition in Sydney that involved singing, dancing and doing scenes with Stevie, Lauren and the top 50 performers of Australia! But actually, the first audition I did was a video audition and I didn't actually know it was for Hi-5!


Question: What have you done in your past to be prepared for your role in Hi-5?

Mary Lascaris: I have done studies in Primary and Secondary Teaching, Music Theatre, Children's Parties and I did a year Performing in Japan at Universal Studios!


Question: What have you learnt from Stevie Nicholson and Lauren Brant?

Mary Lascaris: It's so great to be performing with both Stevie and Lauren! Their years of experience really helps in bringing the team together and creating a family!


Question: Can you talk us through the play along and learn philosophy?

Mary Lascaris: It's amazing how much children learn when they think it is all fun and games. Singing, dancing and playing games brings out so much confidence, discipline and the ability to listen and respond: the kids have so much fun and they are growing stronger and smarter every second!

Question: Can you tell us about the new robot named Tinka?

Mary Lascaris: Ooooh this has been a Hi-5 secret that now we can share with everyone! Tinka is Chat's new best friend who lives with Chat's and her two Bookworm friends Aristotle and Horace in Chat's Chatterbox! Tinka doesn't speak any English so Chat's teaches her a new word or phrase each segment. This is a great segment for all kids especially those who have English as a second language as it really breaks the language down nice and slowly and in a very fun way.


Question: Could you talk us through which was your favourite episode of Hi-5 House to film?

Mary Lascaris: That is a tough question! I have so many favourite scenes but one of my favourites was definitely singing to the little baby chicken! She was so cute and LOVED to sing so loudly, while trying to fly out of my hands all through my song! It was definitely very funny and very challenging!


Question: What do you enjoy most about being a member of Hi-5?

Mary Lascaris: I love being able to make so many people happy all around the world! Singing, dancing and playing with kids is a dream come true! I especially love all the charity work we do with Starlight and World Vision. It's amazing how much music and laughter can make a difference to any child's life anywhere around the world.


Question: Which do you prefer: performing on stage or for television in Hi-5?

Mary Lascaris: They are both fun but I definitely love the stage more. The live audience is definitely more fun to play with than a camera and seeing the enjoyment from all the parents and children is so amazing to watch! It is definitely one of the highs of this job.


Interview by Brooke Hunter