A competition in which children display mental muscle

In the classic version of the Greek myth, Pandora opens a box and unleashes all the evils of the world. In the skits performed by students at Saturday's regional Odyssey of the Mind creative problem-solving competition, those evils received a revamp.

In one: disease, sorrow, and confusion. In another: science class, cheerleaders, and lunch ladies. In a third: homework, cooties, and a dentist - who was defeated with a 4-foot toothbrush made of multicolored, pipe-cleaner bristles.

"It's amazing how smart kids are when they're not bound by reality," said Beth Sanborn, as she watched from the auditorium of Bucks County's Pennsbury High School and waited for her son's team from Montgomery Elementary School to take the stage.

Odyssey of the Mind, an international competition open to students from kindergarten through college, is all about letting creativity take center stage. Teams initially chose from one of five prompts, such as turning the story of Pandora's Box into a video game and acting it out or creating devices run by the power of a rubber band. From there, the options are endless.

They come up with skits and create their own props.

Rolling clothes racks become set backdrops. Styrofoam orbs become solar systems. Wine corks become log cabins. Purple balloons become grapes. Cardboard boxes are ripped up and reconfigured.

They plan and practice for months.

"What we hope the children get out of it is an ability to use creative skills, to be risk-takers, to work together as a team," said regional director Deb Barnes.

For some of the 126 Southeastern Pennsylvania teams that competed Saturday, it was only a debut. They were scored based on specific requirements and style. The first- and second-place winners for each prompt and age category advance to the state finals in April. From there, they hope to win a spot in the World Finals, being held this year in May at Michigan State University in East Lansing.

A team from Philadelphia's Julia R. Masterman School competed in the finals last year. This year, one of the school's six teams created a skit centered on a life-size Monopoly game, an idea two members had while playing the board game at one of their homes. During the eight-minute performance, the students used rubber bands to throw the dice, to launch confetti, and to play music.

It took several tries to get that one right, as did the dice-shooting contraption 12-year-old Ellie McKeown made.

At first, she said, a ball that propels the dice forward kept rolling backward instead. Then, she realized she could put a barrier against the back of the device, a failsafe that allowed the ball to bounce forward if it went in the wrong direction.

"If the idea doesn't work, fake it until it does," McKeown said.

Sometimes, the idea doesn't work on stage, forcing the students to think on their feet and under the pressure of the clock. When one rubber-band device in Riley Chobert's skit failed, the 11-year-old from Philadelphia's Independence Charter School took it to the side - while his teammates continued the script - and fiddled with it until it worked.

"It's wonderful to see your kids learn to problem-solve themselves, rather than being the parent that does it for them," his mother, Courtney Chobert, said after.