list.co.uk/kids KIDS
KIDS
list.co.uk/kids
Events are listed by city, then by type. Submit listings at least 14 days before publication to kids@ list.co.uk. Listings are compiled by Kirstyn Smith. ✽ Indicates Hitlist entry
GLASGOW Activities & Fun FREE Flying Flounders Sat 16 Nov, 1–3pm. Scotland Street School Museum, 225 Scotland Street, 287 0500. Bottles, buttons and other found objects can be transformed into a colourful sea bass. Willow Creatures Sat 16 & Sun 17 Nov,
HITLIST THE BEST KIDS STUFF
K C A L B A S L A
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✽ The Selfish Giant Oscar Wilde’s tale of a mean giant
who learns to mend his ways. Edinburgh Festival Theatre (studio space), Tue 3—Tue 24 Dec.
✽ Lapin Wants to See Santa The perfect
introduction to the French language for little ones. Scottish Mask and Puppet Centre, Glasgow, Sat 7 Dec.
✽ The Red Shoes Live music, fantastic singing and
cute forest animals. See preview, page 66. Tramway, Glasgow, Fri 29 Nov—Sat 21 Dec.
✽ James Robertson: The Gruffalo’s Wean Hilarious Scots adaptation of Julia Donaldson’s popular picture book, The Gruffalo’s Child. Waterstones, Edinburgh (Kinnaird Park), Sat 30 Nov.
✽ Big Ears, Little Ears Special concert for parents and babies under one. Scottish National Portrait Gallery, Edinburgh, Fri 6 Dec.
✽ The Lion King The show that entertains everyone, from toddlers to pensioners, with its amazing staging and costumes. See review, right. Edinburgh Playhouse, until Sat 18 Jan.
1–4pm. £1 suggested donation. Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum, Argyle Street, 276 9599. It’s all about willow weaving today – and exploring wildlife-friendly craft activities. Parkour Drop-in Workshops Saturdays 16, 23, 30 Nov & 7 Dec, 1.30–3pm & 3–5pm. £4. Tramway, 25 Albert Drive, 0845 330 3501. A chance for youngsters to get (safely) free running with Scotland’s only youth-focused parkour course. Ages 8–11 from 1.30pm and 12–18 from 3pm. FREE An Egyptian Holiday Sun 17 Nov, 1–3pm. Glasgow Museums Resource Centre, 200 Woodhead Road, 276 9300. Okay, you’re not really going on holiday to Egypt, but you can still learn what Egyptian queens took to their graves and hold a 3000-year-old scarab. Tonic Tinies: Inspiring Musical Adventures! Wed 20 & 27 Nov, 4 & 11 Dec, 10.30–11am. £3 per session. Merry-Go-Round, 32–34 Nithsdale Road, Strathbungo, 07983 588675. Imaginative play through some music and a bit of movement. FREE Horrible Heidie Tours Sat 23 Nov & Sat 7 Dec, 11am–12.30pm & 1.30–3pm. Scotland Street School Museum, 225 Scotland Street, 287 0500. Experience just how bad kids in the olden days had it. FREE Mack Prints Sat 23 & Sun 24 Nov, 1.30–4pm. Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum, Argyle Street, 276 9599. Learn how to create prints inspired by Charles Rennie Mackintosh. FREE Burrell For Families Sat 23 Nov, 2–4pm. Burrell Collection, 2060 Pollokshaws Road, 287 2550. Make wonderful wire sculptures with the Wacky Wirework family drop-in session. Sound Bites Sun 24 Nov, 10am–2pm. Included in admission (plus one accompanying adult free). Glasgow Science Centre, 50 Pacific Quay, 420 5000. A fun day for little music makers including the chance to make a musical instrument, and have a right old dance down at the Little Explorer’s Disco. Ages 3–5. FREE Pirate School with Captain Codswallop Sun 24 Nov & 8 Dec, 1–2.30pm. Scotland Street School Museum, 225 Scotland Street, 287 0500. The museum is transformed into a pirate ship and Captain Codswallop is around to put budding young pirates through their paces. FREE Crazy Heads Sun 24 Nov, 1–3pm. Provand’s Lordship, 3 Castle Street, 276 1625. Learn more about the Tontine Heads then make your own version. FREE Kids Music Workshop with Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra Sat 30 Nov, 10am. CCA, 350 Sauchiehall Street, 352 4900. The Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra free up kids’ musical creativity. Part of GIOfest. FREE Japanese Carp Kites Sat 30 Nov, 1–3pm. Scotland Street School Museum, 225 Scotland Street, 287 0500. Charles Rennie Macintosh loved Japan – find out why and make your own unique flying fish. FREE Burrell For Families Sat 30 Nov, 2–4pm. Burrell Collection, 2060 Pollokshaws Road, 287 2550. Make a sparkling glass panel at the Stained Glass Effect family drop-in session. Glasgow Kids Comedy Club Sun 1 Dec, 3pm. £4. The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. Live comedy for younger fans, particularly those aged 8–12. No under 5s. Pop Lock-In Sun 1 Dec, 4–6pm. £8. Mansion House, The Glasshouse, 20
MUSICAL THE LION KING ●●●●● Edinburgh Playhouse, until Sat 18 Jan
The Lion King has played to audiences the world over, with different casts bringing the Disney film to life each time. Everywhere it goes, the show is a hit, regardless of who dresses up as Simba, Scar or Pumbaa. And why? Because unusually for a stage musical, the star of The Lion King is not the performers.
Julie Taymor’s costume and puppet designs steal the show from the first note to the last. Whether it’s the giant elephant sauntering through the stalls during the opening parade, the oh-so-clever antelope ‘bicycle’ or the simple but hugely effective wildebeest stampede, Taymor’s vision is a triumph of theatrical ingenuity.
Which is why a show which could easily have been deemed a kiddie musical is regularly visited by adults without a child in sight. The Lion King is for everybody – lovers of big budget family entertainment, theatre connoisseurs and everyone in-between.
To be fair, the music gives Taymor a run for her money. Songs such as ‘Circle of Life’, ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight’ and ‘He Lives in You’, can leave the eyes feeling a little moist, and who isn’t cheered up by a quick blast of ‘Hakuna Matata’?
In this particular production, there are also some fine performances,
especially from Ava Brennan as Nala, comic duo John Hasler and Lee Ormsby (aka Timon and Pumbaa) and the endlessly likeable Gugwana Dlamini as booty-shaking monkey, Rafiki. But it is when everybody comes together as an ensemble that The Lion King
really flies. The antelopes canter, the lionesses leap, the birds flutter and an entire animal kingdom bursts in full voice before our eyes. (Kelly Apter)
14 Nov–12 Dec 2013 THE LIST 65