From ‘Sesame Street’ to Sequoia National Park, It’s All About Awe

When Dorien Davies was growing up in Santa Barbara, her parents owned The Earthling Bookshop. It was a classic, downtown gathering spot for more than 20 years, a place that lives on in the hearts and minds of those who immediately felt welcome the moment they walked into the legendary institution, an integral part of the cultural heart of town. It was the place to meet a friend for a coffee, a treat and the discussion of big ideas. 

Her parents — Penny and Terry Davies — were well known for their community involvement. In the ‘60s, they worked with Pearl Chase to protect Santa Barbara from the high-rise development; they fought off eminent domain takeover of their shop on State Street; sponsored book and author fairs, and dedicated one of the bookshop’s display windows to local nonprofits for a week at a time. When they moved from one location to another, they even invited community members to create a celebratory book brigade to move the volumes to the new, larger shop down the block. Celebrated author Ray Bradbury was a regular, as were acclaimed local writers Fannie Flagg, Sue Grafton, and Fran Halpern, who hosted the Beyond Words literary radio show on KCLU. 

Reflecting on the experience that defined her childhood, Dorien noted, “It was just so normal for me to be in that gathering place. Now, I think about awe of the community that my parents created in the bookshop that was so much more than that. There was always something going on: There were artists’ showcases, author signings, opera evenings, and Saturday morning readings for children. It was such a community center in the kind of special way only independent bookshops are.”

When it all got to be too much, she remembered, “I used to get an art book — I remember one by Annie Leibowitz I especially liked — and I’d take it under the sale table and read it until I fell asleep.” 

In addition to her formative years spent in the bookshop, she was also blessed with an alternative education that helped nurture her sense of wonder in the world. She learned the Greek myths and experienced the sense of accomplishment from completing challenging bicycle trips throughout the West. She built campfires, chopped wood, carried water, and learned the values of self-reliance and the importance of teamwork. “What an unusual schooling I had,” she said. “I went to Montessori Center School, Santa Barbara Middle School, and Midland. All of them [were] so experiential. I was profoundly impacted by those early creative experiences, and it’s had a great influence on what I’m doing now and how I bring these kinds of experiences to children.” 

She fondly described the theatrical mentorship of legendary local educators Eric and Maureen Lehman: “They were so encouraging of kids being weird and loud and expressive. I did all their performances at Santa Barbara Middle School and at Summer Stock. I even played Gollum — and felt like Eric was our Gandalf. I don’t know if they realize how formative those experiences were growing up.” She added with a laugh, “Never underestimate the value of those small community productions. I mean, we even performed at the Lobero Theatre! Who gets to do that as a kid?”

After graduating from Mount Holyoke, she channeled her creativity and spirited self-expression into a career based in Los Angeles as an actress and comedian; she learned improvisation with The Groundlings, and accepted an invitation to study puppetry with the Jim Henson Company — the home of the Muppets. 

Years ago, Dorien provided the voice for the radio commercials for the bookshop. More recently she voiced characters on Word Party and Julie’s Green Room (with Julie Andrews).  Today, she provides the voice, the spirit, and puppetry for the character known as Roxy — an exuberant, singing hedgehog in a new project for the Jim Henson Company. 

It’s called Wowsabout — a production of PBS Kids in partnership with the National Parks Foundation and a part of the PBS KIDS Across America initiative. It’s an inspired, innovative special show for preschoolers all about wonder and wow — and the feeling of awe.  

The project — co-created, written, and executive-produced by Davies and her writing partner Halle Stanford — draws heavily on the research of Dacher Keltner, who wrote the acclaimed book Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life. He served as the primary educational consultant and co-executive producer of the project. 

Keltner writes, “Awe is the feeling of being in the presence of something vast that transcends your current understanding of the world.”  And he delineates the eight wonders of life that lead to the experience of awe: moral beauty, collective effervescence, nature, music, visual design, stories of spiritual and religious significance, stories of life and death, and epiphanies.  

“When I think of it,” Dorien notes, “the bookshop encompassed all the aspects of awe: transcendence with a divine purpose and big ideas; nature — all those slide shows by locals who shared their travels; moral beauty with all that community involvement; visual design, as my father built the bookshelves, directed the lighting, created the fireplace and Barnaby Conrad painted the mural; there were musical performances all the time, and as far as the life cycle, well, I grew up there.”  

She couldn’t have had a better training ground for what she’s doing now. 

In the first of what is hoped to be many, many more episodes of Wowsabout, free-spirited Roxy (Roxana Anna Diana) the hedgehog, from the sunflower fields of Kansas, meets up with by-the-book Ronald (Ronald E. Piggington), the piglet from Washington, D.C. Inspired by the storytelling of her beloved late grandmother, Roxy has driven her solar-powered camper van (decorated with ’60s-style flower power stickers) to see the “magical giants” in the park. The very organized, tech-y Ronald arrived on the scene from the big city with his beeping smartwatch and organized schedule, determined to earn his Junior Ranger Badge. 

The two characters — who at first glance seem to be polar opposite in temperament and background — set off for a series of adventures in the great outdoors of Sequoia National Park. Along the way, they manage to work out their differences and become friends and traveling companions as they camp out, sing, and explore the unknown territory together. They meet up with another puppet character — Pekan, a southern Sierra Nevada fisher weasel — learn about the land, discover the legends and pictographs of the ancients who once inhabited it, and experience moments of pure awe as they encounter the endlessly starry night sky, the migrating tortoiseshell butterflies and the giant sequoia trees.

What makes this production so special is how the puppets interact with each other and with the live action rangers and children in the scenic setting of Sequoia National Park. Dorien has nothing but praise for the expertise of the team that provided valuable insights. “We were so inspired by Sequoia,” she said. “The rangers were the best of the best; we were so happy to work with them.” 

Dorien noted that the production is also spreading awareness about Native American heritage of the area. “We got to see the pictographs at this great interpretive area, and met with the local elders. Dirk Charley a [Native American] consultant who worked with us and provided a lot of information about local tribes. He was so generous with his time and so knowledgeable. We also worked with a local musician, Michael Tek [a member of the North Folk Mono Tribe], who collaborated on writing the flute song; we felt so fortunate that the Mono Museum also partnered with us.”

She added that her respect for indigenous people and culture developed years ago. “Growing up in Santa Barbara, I have a sense of a deep connection with the Chumash — I was always made aware of their influence in a reverential way and as an amplifier of honest native stories.”  

Dorien still remembers her first glimpse of the biggest trees in the world. Usually animated and energetic, her demeanor instantly changed; her voice quieted, she reflected on the moment: “It was on a middle school trip; it was raining, near dusk, and very quiet in the forest. There were ferns everywhere and banana slugs. We had been biking all day. And I just had a feeling of calm. I’d never felt that transcendent, profound feeling before. Ever since then I’ve been called to the Big Trees. There’s something that’s quite regulating for the nervous system — it’s the feeling of awe.”  

She added, “I first learned about awe in my forties — and once you start feeling it and realizing that expansive feeling, you start feeling it more often. What if kids got exposed to awe when they’re young, and they get the chance to identify it — then they might say, ‘I’m going to go look for this feeling’ the rest of their lives.” 

That’s the whole point of Wowsabout — teaching children to become more aware of those transcendent moments that might occur close to home or halfway around the world. Dorien noted, “Everywhere you go, awe is accessible. You don’t have to go see the northern lights in Alaska; you can cultivate the literacy of awe in the body, look at the sky in your own neighborhood — it’s just there.” 

Dorien described the big backyard where she grew up on Islay Street; it provided a never-ending sense of what she now knows is awe: “It was all kind of wild, an untamed wonderland. My father would have liked to have a formal English garden, but he was too busy with the bookshop and would never hire a gardener! There was a rope swing, an old dollhouse that was there when we moved it, a treehouse, and a big woodpile. I could watch the clover as it grew; there was a wisteria bush that took over a giant oak tree and turned it completely purple. I could see the mountains from my bedroom. It was so beautiful.” 

She reflected, “How can you grow up in Santa Barbara and not feel awe? Awe is so accessible in Santa Barbara! I mean, go to the Breakwater; go to Alice Keck Park Memorial Garden; go to the County Bowl!”

The Wowsabout team is actively working on fundraising for a continuing series — and has compiled a list of possible places for Roxy and Ronald to explore together. They range from Mount Everest to Central Park, a soccer match in Europe to Route 66. I’m thinking a little closer to home: Santa Barbara, this storied city that helped inspire it all. With its natural beauty and architectural wonders, its rich Chumash heritage and storied history; its re-creation after an earthquake, legacy as the birthplace of Earth Day, and a butterfly migration of its own, Santa Barbara seems like a perfect place for a Wowsabout.

Watch Wowsabout at pbskids.org/videos/wowsabout.