I’ve recently really enjoyed making a lot of work for young people and their families. With Bucket Club, I’ve worked with The Egg, Birmingham Hippodrome and the house venue network, alongside making family friendly, very silly Shakespeare shows with the HandleBards.
The Christmas Lobster
Meet The Society for Christmas Creatures. They are the world’s only expert team of festive detectives, and they know a thing or two about Christmas. Armed with a taste for adventure (and a pair of knitting needles), they’ve trekked far and wide searching for Christmas creatures of every shape and size. Now they’re here in Farnham for their toughest mission yet: to find the elusive Christmas Lobster and maybe (just maybe) discover the true meaning of Christmas.
A hilarious festive show for all the family, The Christmas Lobster is packed with great songs, laugh-out-loud gags, and buckets of Christmas cheer.
The Christmas Lobster is a Bucket Club production and Farnham Malting’s first in-house Christmas show, playing 13th-24th December 2023.
Photos by Craig Fuller
Written by Nel Crouch | Design by Rebecca Wood | Lighting by Joe Price | Sound by Owen Crouch | Composition and Musical Direction by Ellian Showering | Movement Director Deepraj Singh | Cast: Patrick Bridgman, Jamal Franklin, Robin Harris, Ellian Showering
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is the second show from Slapstick Picnic. It’s a silly, loving riff on J.M. Barrie’s original script and a gingham explosion for everyone aged 6+. The show is touring this summer to outdoor venues across the country. Dates and tickets here.
‘Goes beyond physical-theatre fun: there’s an edge to this script… Yet for all its dark subtext, this tale never fails to be funny and family friendly’’ ★★★★ The Stage
'Funny, quirky, and charming… An expert piece of children’s theatre that celebrates silliness.’ ★★★★ Lost in Theatreland
Photos by Tom Dixon
Written by J.M. Barrie | Design by Ella Barraclough | Movement Director Jennifer Fletcher | Fight Director Tom Jordan | Cast: Charlotte Driessler, Lucy Green, William Ross-Fawcett
Five Children and It
If you could have one wish what would IT be?
Sent away to live in the countryside with their reclusive Uncle, five children discover a secret that’s been hidden away for centuries: a magical, mischievous and extremely grumpy Sand Fairy called It with the power to grant spectacular wishes. There’s just one catch…
Photos by Paul Blakemore (2021 and 2022)
Five Children and It is a new adaptation of the E. Nesbit classic by Marietta Kirkbride in a co-production between Bucket Club and The Egg, Theatre Royal Bath. After an initial run in 2021, it returned for a second full run for Christmas 2022.
‘An inventive, carefully constructed show… maintains The Egg’s proud tradition of delivering beautiful Christmas treats.’ ★★★★ The Stage
‘Hooray, hooray for this utter triumph of a show… proper family theatre of the highest quality’ Bristol24/7
‘We’ve enjoyed so many family productions at The Egg and without fail enjoyed every one. However, Bucket Club’s production of Five Children and It just about trumps the lot… a children’s theatrical masterclass’ The Bath and Wiltshire Parent
Written by Marietta Kirkbride | Design by Rebecca Jane Wood | Music by David Ridley | Lighting by Joe Price | Movement Director Jennifer Jackson | Puppet Direction Aya Nakamura | Puppet Design by Cat Rock | 2021 Cast: Patrick Bridgman, Hannah Bristow, Doxah Dzidzor, Craig Edwards, Hanora Kamen, Luke Murphy | Understudies: Peta Maurice and Dixie Newman | 2022 Cast: Patrick Bridgman, Kezrena James, Tika Mu’Tamir, Ellie Showering, Joseph Tweedale, Rose Wardlaw
Catch That Beast!
The Royal Society of Beastologists are a group with one mission: to track down and capture Mythical Beasts. They’re holding their meeting here today in hopes of finding the Brutal Beast of Bristol. They’re hoping all you new members might be able to help them out.
Catch That Beast! is a magical, deliciously silly show for outdoor performance exploring how we interact with wild things and how we can make change happen. Full of offbeat humour, live music, inventive puppetry and audience participation, it is suitable for everybody aged 5+.
Catch That Beast! toured in Summer 2022 with the house venue network, as well as dates at the Lyric Hammersmith, Pound Arts, Salisbury Playhouse, Farnham Maltings, Southstreet Arts, Trowbridge Town Hall and Offbeat Oxford. In Autumn 2022 it toured primary schools with Birmingham Hippodrome’s Education Network.
Written by Nel Crouch | Design by Rebecca Jane Wood | Puppet Design by Cat Rock | Assistant Designer Emily Nelson | Music by Joey Hickman, Hanora Kamen and Ellie Showering | Tour manager/ AD: Ben Kulvichit | Cast: Georgia Jackson, Dominic Rye, Ellie Showering
The HandleBards
I’ve made four shows with comedy Shakespeare company, The HandleBards. Work with the company tours worldwide to theatres, outdoor spaces and schools throughout the year, starting with a cycling tour, where the performers cycle from London to Edinburgh and perform on the way. Condensed versions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Romeo and Juliet, As You Like It, and The Tempest are performed with four actors and live music, slapstick, clowning and rapid multi-rolling.
More info on the shows here.
Praise for As You Like It and Romeo and Juliet:
★★★★★ – The Shields Gazette
★★★★★ 'Charming, funny and very silly,' - Young Perspective
★★★★ 'A tender and touching production, whilst still managing to get away with a lot of piss-taking' - The Wee Review
★★★★ 'It is cheeky, it is hilarious and it is touching (sometimes literally).' - Reviews Hub
