GIANT STEPS
Seen at Children’s Festival, Edinburgh. I Plays ‘Just Kidding’ - Cumbemauld’s I 1th Festival of Theatre for Children, ) Wed 14 June, 10am-2pm. ; So computer games and TV have forever zapped our children’s i imagination/concentration/intelligenc ; e have they? Try telling that to the 200 = odd kids watching Visible Fictions’ '
show Giant Steps at the Children’s ; ' Festival last week. ; 5, Armed with just four actors and a 3
barely-there stage set, this bright young Stirling-based company played 1 a simple, timeless tale of friendship, ' courage and the hassles of being a kid in a grown-up world. The star of the show is Ben, a real-life Cor Willie with a scruffy, spikey hair-do and a secretive talent for writing fantastic stories where his teachers become mutoid aliens and the journey to school becomes a trek through tropical rainforest.
The moral meat of the tale comes when Ben makes pals with fiesty, independent new girl Chris, who persuades him to reveal his stories to the world. The outing of his talent leads first to disaster (slaggings from his pals and smiles from the teacher)
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Visible Fictions: taking Giant Steps for children’s theatre
and ultimately triumph (when winning a national story competition finally wins respect from family and friends). The story has a kind of nasty sting in its tail, but nobody seemed to mind and the kids sat wide-eyed throughout. Proof if there ever was proof that snappy dialogue, strong
; acting and slick direction can still win
young hearts and minds even in the age of Super Mario. The kids weren’t the only ones impressed. Just as Visible Fictions were preparing for their first day at the Children’s Festival, news broke that they’d scooped the coveted £100,000 Bank of Scotland Young People’s Theatre Award for 1995. (Ellie Carr)
liain or shine, our at-a-glance guide will see you through. Events are listed under outdoors or indoors columns, and then divided by city. Kids listings compiled by Ellie Carr.
Outdoors
M 1 Activities and Fun
I Summer Fayre Glasgow Steiner School. 52 Lumsden Street. Yorkhill. Sat 3 Jun. Ham-3pm. £1 (50p); family ticket £3. All the fun of the fayre with tombola. horne- baking and craft stalls. puppet shows. music and storytelling. Lunches also available.
EDINBURGH
Actrvrties and Fun
I Corgie/llalry Community Festival Various venues. Sat lO—Sat 17 Jun. Further information from the festival co- ordinator on 346 8422. A bustling programme of family events on the theme of ‘Mardi Gras‘. kicking off on Sat 10 Jun with a parade (along the streets of Dairy and Gorgie) and a stormer of a gala day at Murieston Park.
I Meadows Festival Sat 3/Sun 4 Jun. Free. Annual laid back and mellow lark in the park, with stalls. games. shows. live bands and general laying round in the long grass. . I Scotland Yard Summer Festival George 1 Park. New Town. Sun 11 Jun. Noon—4pm.
Music. entertainment. stalls of all kinds and a special cafe can be found at this year‘s Scotland Yard Adventure Centre summer fete. Theme of the day is 'The Auld Alliance'.
indoors
film
I Andre (U) Cannon Clarkston Road. Muirend. 637 2641. Sat 3 Jun. 10.30am. £1.60 (kids and adults). Doors open at 10am. See Film index.
Theatre
I Aesop’s Fables Paisley Arts Centre. New Street. 887 1010. Sat 3 Jun. 1pm. £1.75 (£1.25). Hullabaloo Children's Theatre leap into action with mask and original music to bring Aesop‘s famous morality tales of cunning foxes. bone- head donkeys and silly goats to life.
I Children’s Festival on Tour Mitchell Theatre, 227 5511 Until Sat 10 Jun. Glasgow gets a chance to catch a slice of the Edinburgh International Children‘s Festival action as various shows take to the road for this first ever kidsfest tour. Among the acts switching camps to the Mitchell Theatre after their stint in lnverleith Park are Fred Garbo. Theater Sans Fils, Robert Minden Ensemble. Theater Kaze No Ko and Victorian State Opera.
I Peter Pan Paisley Arts Centre. New
Street. 887 1010. Thurs 8 Jun. 7pm. £3
(£1.50). Edinburgh Puppet Company present their innovative multi-media version of the classic 1M Barrie tale about the boy who never grew tip.
I Scottish Mask and Puppet Theatre 8—10 Balcarres Avenue. Kelvindale. 33‘) 6185. 2pm. £2.50 (£1.50)
Sat 3 Jim Gingerbread House/Stone Soup. Ages 4—9. A double bill from the popular Pavla’s Puppets with an original look at two traditional children‘s fairy tales.
Sal /() Jim The Tree. Ages 5~12 and family. The Jill Davie Puppet Company with a tale that tells of a day in the life of a tree -- and all the creatures who live in it. Puppets. Music and audience participation.
Exhibitions
I Animal Magic Royal Museum of Scotland. Chambers St. 225 7534 (ext 219). Until 11 Jun. Mon—Sat 10am—5pm: Sun noon—5pm. All ages. Free. See Art listings. Special storytelling sessions are available to nurseries and creches groups. book in advance with the museum.
Theatre
I Aesop’s Fables St Brides Centre. 10 1 Orwell Terrace. 346 1405. Sat 10 Jun. I 7.30pm. £2 (£1). See Glasgow.
I The Little Prince Queen's Hall. Clerk Street. 668 3456. Sat 10 Jun. 11am; Mon 12 Jun. 2pm. £2.50 (£1.50). Children‘s opera based round Antoine de Saint- liuxpery‘s magical. surreal tale of the pilot. the little prince and the enchanted planet. Set to music by Matthew Peacock and performed by students from University of Edinburgh.
I The Spark Theatre Workshop. 34 Hamilton Place. 226 5425. Mon 5 and Fri 9 Jun. 7.30pm. £6 (£3). See photo caption.
Activities and Fun
3 I Family Day on the Farm ()atridge Agricultural College. Ecclesmachan. Broxburn. Sun 11 Jun. l—4pm. Find out what goes on down on the farm — meet the animals. take a tractor/trailer ride and watch working demonstrations of farm equipment.
I Teddy Bear’s Day Bo'ness and Kinneil Railway. Union Street. Bo'ness. Sun 11
‘ Jun. 11am—5pm. £4 (£3); family ticket
. £1 1. Take your teddy along for a ride on
3 the steam trains and you‘ll get a miniature
' teddy for free.
2 Theatre 1 I Software: A Computer 0pera
z I...
. ‘3, ‘ I THE SPARK Theatre Workshop, 34
Cilla on Blind Date.
? oursrns THE cmrs . j
I the imperial Monster of Ancient Rome —~
MacRobert Arts Centre. University of Stirling. 01786 461081. Tue 13 Jun. 10.30am; 2pm. £3. Aussie company Victoria State Opera with a computerised. synthesised Linn, Wire/r uml the Wardrobe type tale for the 90s. Valerie is an ordinary little girl playing games on her computer. when suddenly she is thrown head-first into the myterious cyber-world that exists on the other side of her screen.
I Cunninghame Festival Various venues across Ayrshire. Sat 3-Mon 12 Jun. For booking details and further information call Cunninghame District Council on 01294 27-1166. Selected kids events listed below.
Fab Lab Marquee. Largs Promenade. Ayrshire. Mon 5 Jun. 2—5pm; Tue 6—11 Jun. 10am—5pm. 75p. Take a wander round the weird world of bubbles in ‘Unbelievable‘ and freeze your socks off in ‘The Coldest Show on liarth' as the pick of the Edinburgh international Science Festival comes to Largs. Also featured are workshops in making electronic gadgets. periscopes. prisms and simple cartoon animation machines.
Tiny Tots Highland Games Various venues across Ayrshire. Mon 5~—Sun 1 1 Jun.
10—1 1.30am; l—3pm. All activities free. Mini-kills at the ready as Scots tiny tors are invited to take part in some ‘alternative' Highland games activities that even Geoff Capes isn‘t man enough to try. Test your strength in the Tug 0‘ War Toffee. Toss the Toilet Roll and Haggis Hurling. and learn to make your very own set of bagpipes. Sessions are open to everyone. but all children must be accompanied by an adult.
Monster Double Bill: Frankenstein/Nero Magnum Theatre. lrvine. Sat 3 Jun. 7.30pm. £5 (£2.50). ()ver 100 performers from the Ayrshire Voices take to the stage in this musical show by and for young people. First off the mark is Carey Blyton's light-hearted look at the heaving monster of Frankel/isn't”. and to round off the evening. Paul Drayton‘s Nero tells of
famous for playing his fiddle while Rome burned.
I Just Kidding: Cumbernauld Theatre’s 7th Festival of Theatre for Children Sun 4—Sat 17 Jun. Performance times and booking details from the Cumbernauld Theatre box office. 01236 732887. A line spread of the best children‘s theatre and entertainment currently on offer in Scotland including Tag's latest production The Magic Islam]. Visible Fictions (Iium Steps (see preview). l'lullaballoo's At'snp's Fab/(hr. Hopscotch Theatre‘s Bonnie Prince Charlie and a free fun-packed Gala
. ()pening featuring Mr Boom. Mr Macca.
the Whizz Kids. face-painting. pony rides. treasure trails and more.
at 1"
Hamilton Place, 226 5425. Mon 5 and Fri 9 Jun. 7.30pm. £6 (£3). Britain’s leading dance company for young people, ludus, perform their award-winning show The Spark in conjunction with local schools. Using a combination of multimedia and contemporary dance, the show sees Romeo and Juliet spiralled into the TV age as the star-crossed lovers end up at the mercy of
70 The List 2-15 Jun 1995