Brighton Festival 2013: Family
GET BUZZY WITH THEGREAT ENORMO
A Kerfuffle in B flat for Orchestra, Wasps & Soprano
How did we learn about music, and in particular about orchestral music? For many of us we start with Prokofiev and Peter And The Wolf, for others it’s Benjamin Britten’s Young Person’s Guide To The Orchestra or Saint Saën’s The Carnival of the Animals. All great works, informative, inventive and fun – but is there room for one more?
This year’s Guest Director Michael Rosen loves them all and has decided that there is room for a new work that would inspire and involve young people in the world of orchestras and music. Having decided this he has collaborated with James Morgan and Juliette Pochin to create a brand new… well a brand new kerfuffle – The Great Enormo!
The Great Enormo is a fantastic new theme park that allows visitors to travel through time. So the music to accompany it should reflect different periods and places from history, shouldn’t it? It’s not so easy, and Michael has his work cut out coaxing, cajoling and bullying the orchestra into producing the tunes. As he jumps from the Medieval to the Jazz Age, from the Wild West to intergalactic space, will the viola player get his solo? And who’s the soprano who keeps turning up unexpectedly?
“At the Great Enormo your dreams become real. At the Great Enormo what’s real is a dream. We’ll take you to climb a castle in the air. We’ll take you where you’ll hear yourself scream…
Michael Rosen”
The Great Enormo is both an interactive guide to the orchestra and a whirlwind tour of musical history. Its sharp mixture of fun, surprises and a bit of spookiness make it the perfect Kerfuffle for primary school children and their families.
Michael has also chosen the rest of this wacky and wonderful programme. Malcolm Arnold’s A Grand, Grand Festival Overture is a hilarious orchestral set-piece which ends up with the vacuum cleaners and rifles vying for supremacy; how the rifles win brings an unexpected twist to any concert. For Stravinsky’s glittering Firebird Suite, Michael has written short poems telling the story of the Firebird, which he will read at the beginning of each movement.
Sat 4 May, 5pm, Concert Hall, Brighton Dome
Pippa’s Picks
Head of Learning, Access and Participation at Brighton Dome & Brighton Festival and founder of Brighton Festival’s annual Children’s Parade, Pippa Smith chooses her favourite family-friendly shows from this year’s festival programme
Picablo
I discovered this show at a Children’s Theatre Festival in Mantua and instantly fell in love with it. Tam Teatro Musica use various gaming technologies to quite literally bring the works of Picablo to life in ways that made my jaw-drop. I came away with a new admiration for his paintings.
Sun 5–Tue 7 May, 4pm (Sun) 11am, 2pm & 5.30pm (Mon), 1.30pm (Tue), The Old Market
Flathampton
We’ve all had play mats growing up – the ones with a town plan laid out before us. This is the real version! Children and adults work together to build the town, populate its shops and bring Flathampton to life. It’s going to be great fun.
Thu 9–Sun 12 May, various times,
Brighton Dome Corn Exchange
The Adventures of Don Quixote by Bicycle
This wonderful idea from theatre company Burn The Curtain allows families to explore the mythos of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza from their bike saddles. There’s also the option of transforming your bicycle into a steed worthy of such an adventure.
Sat 18 & Sun 19, 11am & 3pm, South Downs Assembly Point (Devils Dyke)
Varmints
This piece of dance-theatre based on Helen Ward and Marc Craste’s award-winning book is simply gorgeous. It tells the tale of small, shy creature who wants to protect his peaceful countryside life from the ever encroaching hustle and bustle of city life. Created by Travelling Light Theatre Company and Sadlers Wells it’s a must see for young dance enthusiasts.
Tues 21 & Wed 22 May, 6pm (Tue), 1.30pm & 6pm (Wed), The Old Market
Captain Bloods Revenge: A Pirate Opera
Ahoy me hearties! A Brighton Festival world premiere from Glyndebourne, this buccaneering adventure for kids follows Salty Sue as she embarks on a high seas quest in searching of missing pirate Billy Bone. Dressing-up is positively encouraged… as is the shivering of timbers.
Fri 24 & Sat 25 May, 6pm (Fri), 11am & 3pm (Sat), The Old Market,
