Reviews & features: Kids, Issue 664

5 Questions - Patrick Monahan

Comedian Patrick Monahan (winner of the longest kids show title award) takes a break from Stories and Tales for Kids Who Can Run Faster Than Snails to answer our 5 Questions.

Sticks, Stones, Broken Bones

Your plastic friends

There’s something delightfully primal about a shadow-and-light show; it makes us all into children again. This piece, a light comic novelty of the kind only seen in fringe festivals, is an exemplar of its kind, with the delicate touch required for a…

The White Dalmatian

Fairytale musical with a twist

Little Claire gets a special new stuffed toy for her birthday, Dalmatian Polkadot, but one of her old toys, Witch, is jealous. She magics Dalmatian’s spots to Fairyland and all the other toys have to journey there to retrieve them. In this musical…

Belt Up's Octavia

Confused quest in a war zone

Princess Octavia is on a quest to restore order to her war-torn land. In a tale inspired by Cornish folklore, she is guided on her way by sprites, witches and hobgoblins. Belt Up have won many fans (and an Edinburgh International Festival award) for…

The Railway Children

A classic revisited

Rather than cater to contemporary children’s experiences, Sell a Door Theatre Company has gone for a faithful rendition of a classic. E. Nesbit’s well-loved tale of Mrs Waterbury and her three children, who are forced to move to the country while her…

Alice in Wonderland

Fast-paced adaptation goes full throttle

This entertaining version of Lewis Carroll’s classic is an inventive blend of physical theatre, music, puppetry and pantomime. The three young Derby-based performers who juggle all the roles between them establish a strong and immediate rapport with…

Andrew Clover’s Almost Famous Story Show

Free range storytelling

Nobody could ever accuse Andrew Clover of phoning his show in. The smart-suited comedian gives everything he’s got during this hour of high energy, low structure entertainment. He’s the kind of man you would have killed for as an uncle when you were…

Penguin

Puppetry and song for young ‘uns

Opening a bright, shiny package, little boy Ben discovers a penguin inside. But joy quickly turns to disappointment when the flightless fellow refuses to speak. Various attempts at persuasion are made, including a trip to the doctors, to no avail, until…

Hairy Maclary and Friends

Canine capers

This is old-school children’s theatre in all the right ways. Based on Lynley Dodd’s hugely popular picture books, the show ticks all the kiddie boxes: audience participation that’s fun, but not humiliating; lively songs; a few ‘it’s behind you’ moments…

Jeremy Lion

Soused kids entertainer goes green

Ruddy-faced Jeremy Lion uses the fertile format of the children’s educational play to bind an alcoholic slapstick to lyrical ditties detailing the dangers of global warming. It’s a finely tailored package of physical, musical and cynical gags that’s at…

Don't Run with Scissors

A Betrayal of Penguins can't quite regain of glory of 2009

Like most glorious debut ventures, the ‘difficult second album’ syndrome is a tough nut to batter. And try as they might, A Betrayal of Penguins just can’t quite regain the glory of 2009 in their new show, Don’t Run with Scissors. Some might point to a…

Jungle Book: The Next Chapter

Monkeying around with Kipling’s classic

Rudyard Kipling’s fables are part of the collective national psyche, so this follow-up from Glenn Elston and the Australian Shakespeare Company has a lot to live up to. The story picks up when Mowgli, now grown, returns to the jungle to visit Baloo.

Foolish Notion - Oor Rabbie

Funny, Accessible, and highly recommended homage to Robert Burrns

Edinburgh isn’t the only place to see great children’s theatre at the moment. The very wonderful Foolish Notion (superb musician Wendy Weatherby and one half of Wee Stories, Andy Cannon) are legging it out of town after performing their Fringe show Wee…

Just Macbeth!

Slick, accessible and boisterous adaptation of classic tragedy

There are plenty of reasons why Macbeth is not suitable for kids: there’s the cold-blooded murder, the unmitigated violence, not to mention the difficult language. Australian company Bell Shakespeare, however, are experts in these things, and what they…

Stick Man brings Julia Donaldson's children's book to life

Lively adaptation hits the spot

Julia Donaldson’s 2008 picture book, Stick Man isn’t the longest tale in the world, so anyone looking to adapt it would have to cast around for some pretty extensive padding. Leave it to the formidable Scamp Theatre to do just that. Performed by…

The Last Miner uses puppetry to profound effect

Moving, melancholic puppet show

This inventive show, developed by Tortoise in a Nutshell in association with Catherine Wheels, is short on action, features little dialogue and takes place on the tiny stage of the Hill Street studio theatre. But the tale of an elderly miner, living…

Farm Boy

Country tale in need of a jump start

Two men, Grandpa and Grandson, share the stage with a green Fordson tractor and a toolbox. The men weave stories that link four generations, covering the period in farming history where tractors took over from horses, and culminate in a hare versus…

Children's show Twinkle Twonkle combines educational with entertaining

Adventure in the sky at night

Imparting information in a show, without turning your stage into a classroom, is no mean feat. Given the enormous amount of facts and figures we learn during Twinkle Twonkle, it really is astounding that this doesn’t feel ‘educational’ – just…

The Mole Who Knew It Was None Of His Business

Making a song and dance about poo

This perennial favourite from Kipper Tie Theatre never loses its spark, thanks to a constant supply of young audiences, and a fresh crop of actors to deliver it. Based on Werner Holzwarth’s popular picture book, the story opens with a hit and run…