Oh, Wow . . . What a Scream!

The line for autographs from singer Aaron Carter wrapped nearly all the way around the Nickelodeon Kidway at the All That Music & More Festival here.

Marlee Fritz, of nearby Freeport, Pa., waited in line more than half an hour to meet the new, hot preteen idol.

“I love him,” she squealed.

But he’s only 11.

“I’m only 11,” she said.

And so, a new generation was indoctrinated into the American tradition of concertgoing and teen-idol worship many years earlier than their parents ever were and a few years before even their older siblings.

The All That tour, which hit Pittsburgh earlier this month, rolls into Southern California this week for four shows. Nickelodeon gave the concert the name of its popular comedy variety show for kids and adapted the festival concert to suit the cable network’s demographic.

Instead of security guards searching for contraband alcohol and weapons, the orange-shirted event staff reunited separated parents and children. Instead of booths for Mehndi body art and women’s political causes, which filled the Lilith Fair, or the Burrito People and makeshift tie-dye and bong vendors that traveled with the H.O.R.D.E. festival, the All That tour had a Kidway full of child-friendly games and promotions for its own programs, including:

* An audition tent for the program “Figure It Out.”

* A talent search for “All That.”

* The Big Help area, where children and their parents could find out about Nickelodeon’s social campaign to get kids to help with causes in their communities.

* Karaoke for preteen girls to screech along to their favorite Backstreet Boys songs.

* The Wall of Challenge for kids to practice faux rock climbing.

* The Kid Car Wash and Drencher Adventure Theater, where kids got soaking wet under the spray of hoses.

* And a Parents Zone, where adults enjoyed some peace and quiet and played trivia games related to sister network TV Land’s classic sitcoms.

But more than the festival and the concert trappings have been adjusted for preteen first-time concertgoers. The show itself has been modified to suit the young audience, which has been made up overwhelmingly of girls.

The concerts begin quite a bit earlier than shows for grown-ups. Acts play short sets, some consisting of only three or four songs. And performers from the “All That” TV program, including Danny, Josh and Nick, fill time between the musical acts with comic skits similar to those on their weekly show.

And it’s all aimed squarely at Nickelodeon’s preteen audience, most of which has never been to a concert.

The Goyettes of Toronto, Ohio, for instance, made the hourlong drive to Pittsburgh so their daughters, 9-year-old Carrie and 10-year-old Nancy, could see their first concert. They made their way to the front gate clutching their tickets and autograph books.

“Where do we go?” Carrie asked people along the way to the gate. “We’ve never done this before. I hope we get to see the Rugrats.”

Characters from “Rugrats” aren’t included in this Nickelodeon package, but the girls’ mother said she didn’t think they’d be disappointed.

“We just heard it on TV, and I knew they would want to come,” Dorothy Goyette said.

There are plenty of kids in the All That crowd who just had to come to the show. Best friends Tina Iorio and Caitlin Cahill, both 16 and from suburban Pittsburgh, for instance, walked to a neighborhood music store at 7:30 a.m. on the first day tickets were available. They won a lottery to buy tickets first and were so excited they could not sit still in their front-row seats.

“I scrounged up $40 and these were $39,” Tina said. “It was couch money,” Caitlin said.

One dad dropped the girls off and another came back to pick them up after the show because their parents made it clear they had no interest in attending.

“After New Kids on the Block, they’re done coming to concerts with us,” Caitlin said.

Parental Guidance

In Pittsburgh, the Star Lake Amphitheatre parking lot was a sea of minivans on the night of the All That concert. Most were empty, but some contained patient parents, waiting out the show from the comfort of reclining front seats.

The All That crowd was filled with parents roaming the perimeter, shaking their heads and rolling their eyes at each other in mutual suffering as their children went bonkers for every gag in the skits and every butt wiggle from the singers.

But not every grown-up in the crowd had been dragged along. Gina Harrold had accompanied her 8-year-old daughter, Kelly, to the show and also took her backstage to get autographs from 98 Degrees band members. Kelly was shy, but Gina wasn’t.

“We did it for her, but I was willing,” she said, giggling, as the family posed for a photo with the pop quartet.

Tina Iorio was picked to go on stage during a No Authority song. The teenage foursome sang around her while she covered her face, squealed and shook.

“It’s hard to control yourself!” she said later.

“Why didn’t you grab their butts?” Caitlin demanded.

Any butt-grabbing might have surprised the boys in No Authority, who are a little taken aback at some of the reactions they get from the young crowds.

Mostly, the girls throw flowers and Beanie Babies on stage, which is what the group expected on this tour. But before the show in Pittsburgh, a girl threw her underwear at a shocked Eric Stretch.

“They weren’t even like ladies’ panties,” said the band member. “They were like for a 12-year-old girl or something. And they were worn!”

When it was time for Aaron Carter’s set, he entered the stage on a scooter, as if to underscore his tender age. Girls threw him teddy bears and flowers. He threw them candy.

Backstage, he’s your average squirmy 11-year-old boy, happy to play hand-held video games in his jungle-themed tour bus with his dad, his manager and his acting coach on hand.

He was happy to be invited on the All That tour. He likes Nickelodeon, after all. He was a guest on “Figure It Out,” where he got slimed simply for being the younger brother of Backstreet Boy Nick Carter.

He shrugged off the throngs of screaming girls. He can’t hear most of them on stage, he said. And the All That crowds of 15,000 to 20,000 can’t compare to the 150,000 he claims to have played to at concerts in Europe.

If artists barely in double-digit ages can sell records and draw crowds, why shouldn’t someone package a festival tour around them? And why shouldn’t Nickelodeon try to push the envelope of concert audiences to include its viewers? There are plenty of other entertainment markets vying for those kids’ dollars.

“We met professional wrestlers before, but this is better,” said Angela Ciucci, 14.

Angela and her best friend, Maura Clawson, also 14, got autographs and kisses from No Authority before the concert.

Stretch even autographed Maura’s tank top.

“You would be amazed the things--the places--they want us to sign,” No Authority bandmate Ricky G. said.

Sophisticated Teenage Fans

The throngs of girls with hair pulled back in scrunchies or plastic butterfly barrettes, who chomp gum as they sing along with acts, can be surprisingly sophisticated fans. Just as Aaron Carter shows a worldliness beyond his years, so do the girls in the audience.

Annie Watkinson showed up at the concert with a handmade cardboard poster, declaring her undying love for 98 Degrees. Her broad smile revealed a mouthful of colored braces. At 12, she is no concert novice. Her mother had taken her to see Hanson last year. Now she has moved on in musical taste to devote herself to 98 Degrees, and she had a matter-of-fact reason why.

“They look good and they can really sing,” she said.

BE THERE

All That Music & More Festival: Friday at Coors Amphitheatre, 2050 Otay Valley Road, Chula Vista, 5:30 p.m. $23 to $41. (619) 671-3600. Sunday at Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre, 8800 Irvine Center Drive, Irvine, 5 p.m. $12 to $32. (714) 855-4515. Monday and Tuesday at Universal Amphitheatre, 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, 5 p.m. $40.50 to $53. (818) 622-4440.