Buckle up for something cosmic
The Southbank Centre is putting on quite a show this Easter.
Three events geared towards families and young people will run throughout April at their beautiful Queen Elizabeth Hall and Riverside Terrace.
Between 8 – 10 April, Zog and the Flying Doctors are back for a brand new adventure, in a family show based on the famous book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. It has been described as “a truly modern take on a classic fairy tale.” You wont be disappointed.
Meanwhile, Meal One serves up some mid-week fun on 14 and 15 April. It is a show for five to nine year-olds jam-packed with breathtaking projections, music, dance and augmented reality. See what they have in store.
Meal One runs for approximately 45 minutes from 10:30 a.m on both days.
For one day only, the centre will unleash the Pedal Power Disco on Saturday 16 April. The entire disco is powered by bicycles. There are no batteries, so when the pedalling stops, the grooving stops. Bring your kids, neighbours, grannies and grandads to make sure this never happens!
Best of all: it is free.
Tickets for the other events are £12 – 24.
Check out what’s on at www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on?
Fancy meeting the Gruffalo?
Greenwich Theatre London has announced their upcoming children’s Easter programme.
There will be a range of family-friendly shows at the stunning theatre, including musical adaptations of the Gruffalo and a playful infant event, between 4 – 17 April.
Kicking off at Greenwich is Hurly Burly’s Meet Me a Tree, an interactive first opera for 0 – 2 year olds. It will feature beautiful singing and relaxing music on a multisensory journey, allowing all the opportunity to unwind and have fun.
Then, on April 13-14, you can join mouse on a daring adventure through the deep, dark wood in a musical reimagining of the classic book the Gruffalo. Children aged three and up can sing, laugh and have monstrous laughs in this much-loved show that’s toured Britain and the world.
But the family events do not stop there.
Paddle Theatre is bringing you Margo and Mr Whatsit from 15-16 April, a show about playful imaginary friends and what happens to them as we grow up.
Kids aged four and above will enjoy it the most and there are special post-show workshops, which will make a wonderful addition to a grand day out.
All are evening performances or matinees.
Call the box office on 020 8858 7755 or visit www.greenwichtheatre.org.uk to find out more.
Head down the rabbit hole
Families have been invited to leap down the rabbit hole at an action-packed Alice in Wonderland themed event at Elephant this Easter half term.
The free ‘Easter in Wonderland’ event will take place on 16 April from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Castle Square in Elephant and Castle.
There will be plenty of Alice in Wonderland themed activities at the event, including face painting, bunting making and biscuit decorating workshops, where you can decorate a biscuit shaped mushroom to take home (or scoff right away).
All workshops will be free to take part in.
A selection of performers will be playing from 12:00 p.m. to celebrate the Easter festivities, such as the Elephant and Castle Community Hub Choir, Frogprince Kids Music Concert, Upside Down Street Dance and SuperArts Dance Academy.
The Mad Hatter will be handing out ‘eat me’, ‘drink me’ and ‘treat me’ vouchers which can be exchanged with traders at Castle Square.
Every event is free to enjoy and you can see the full timetable here: https://communityhubse1.co.uk/
Go Wild for Gulliver’s Travels
The Unicorn Theatre on Tooley Street has rather a lot of upcoming events this spring.
There will be a whole host of entertaining performances, including Gulliver’s Travels which is shown until 16 April.
In this Unicorn Production, inspired by Johnathan Swift’s book, Gulliver’s fantastical imaginings have been vividly brought to life using video cameras, intricate table-top sets and projection, alongside live performance.
This creates a playful, funny and highly inventive show that uses Swift’s biting satire to view our own world from a very different angle.
It is a family show for everyone aged 7 and over to enjoy, lasting under two hours.
Wild is something for younger audiences. Adapted from the glorious picture book, this funny and moving story is full of wide-eyed wonder, celebrating the free spirit in all of us.
The story is vividly told using atmospheric sound, skilful physicality and imaginative puppetry. Wild is about accepting people for who they are rather than trying to make them into something they are not.
It will run until 17 April.
Find out more: https://www.unicorntheatre.com/whats-on
Support Local Artists
Can’t face the drive up to Edinburgh? Peckham has created its own arts festival – Peckham Fringe – which will take place every day from Monday 2 May to 5 June.
There will be a multitude of events and art forms on display, spanning new writing, musical, stand-up, sketch comedy, dance, cabaret, opera, poetry, mentalism, improvisation and even the odd Q&A.
Many of which will be interactive and, if you dare, participant-led.
“We want to be representative of Southwark,” said associate director of Theatre Peckham Phillippe Cato. “This place is made up of many different identities and people.”
“We wanted to make sure there is something for everyone.”
He says Peckham Fringe has picked out pieces that will resonate with local audiences and asked everyone from the area to “get involved.”
The event involves up and coming local artists, as well as big names, and will support new talent as much as possible, both artistically and financially, with ticket fees split with artists.
“I am really excited to see our resident company open the festival. They are so many brilliant artists [at the Fringe] I cant wait.
“There’s a lot of work you wouldn’t see at any other festival,” he added.
Tickets are on sale now, with discounts available for unwaged individuals and locals.
Take a look at the Peckham Fringe here: www.theatrepeckham.co.uk/peckham-fringe/