Alex McCallum, Vienna Seabright, and Meg Barlow Rolleston in Theandrican. Photo / Supplied
Alex McCallum, Vienna Seabright, and Meg Barlow Rolleston in Theandrican. Photo / Supplied
Local Children's theatre company Stories and More is bringing their eighth children's theatre show Theandrican to The Meteor in Hamilton just in time for the term three school holidays.
Following successful seasons of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe in 2016 and The Magician's Nephew in 2018, Stories andMore are back with an equally magic family-friendly foray into another world.
An original play written by Owen Mooney, adapted and directed by Stories and More founder Cecilia Mooney the show follows three children who find themselves transported to the magical land of Theandrican after a game of hide and seek goes wrong.
John, Linda and Zara must then race to find their way back home avoiding an evil wizard and enlisting the help of the magical people they meet along the way.
Tracey Andrews and Cecilia Mooney working on the production of Theandrican. Photo / Supplied
"The whole show is very magical" says director Cecilia Mooney "we wanted to present a fairytale that captures the imagination of young and old".
Imaginations will certainly be captured with the characters such as Back to Front girl - a girl who can only speak in reverse, Queen Patra a wise oracle, the liquorice cats – cats who can talk and the ever-eccentric professors who's help can turn to hindrance at the flick of a switch featuring in the play.
A show cast predominantly from students in the Stories and More drama classes (with some familiar adult faces too) Theandrican will mark the first time on stage for some performers.
"One of the greatest things to witness is children in the audience seeing children their own age on stage," says Mooney "they see our cast and realise that theatre and being onstage is something they can do too".
Theandrican is definitely children's theatre made by and for children, something that Stories and More has become known for, with a tradition of including children from their drama classes in their shows.
Theandrican is definitely children's theatre made by and for children. Photo / Supplied
"It's so important to us that the students in our drama classes get the opportunity to put what they've learned in class into practice," says Mooney.
Suitable for families and all ages from five years and up, Theandrican will be running at The Meteor Theatre in Victoria Street in the second week of the school holidays; October 5 to 12, with 11am shows on the 5th, 8th and 10th, 2pm shows on the 6th & 12th, and 7pm shows on the 5th, 9th, 10th and 11th.
