Preview: The Snail And The Whale at Durham Gala

Children's Classic Comes To Durham

The Snail And The Whale

Durham Gala Theatre

13 & 14^th February 2015

Based on the 2003 modern classic by Julia Donaldson & Axel Scheffler

‘An exquisite piece of theatre... that leaves you smiling’ (The Stage 16/4/12)

Tall Stories (creators of the Gruffalo and Room on the Broom stage shows) are proud to present their latest exciting collaboration with Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. 

A tiny snail longs to see the world, so she hitches a lift on the tail of a humpback whale. Together they go on an amazing journey, experiencing sharks and penguins, icebergs and volcanoes. But when the whale gets beached, how will the tiny snail save him?

Tall Stories is a registered charity founded by co-directors Olivia Jacobs and Toby Mitchell in 1997. The company has performed at the National Theatre, at various West Endtheatres and on Broadway. Tall Stories shows tour to small and large scale venues in the UK, and have performed abroad as far away as Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Hong Kong, Poland, Singapore, Taiwan and the US.

Tall Stories’ adaptation is inspired by the work of Storybook Soldiers, who help British military personnel abroad to record bedtime story CDs for their children back home. The amazing journey of the tiny snail is seen through the eyes of a very adventurous young girl – who’d love to be going round the world with her seafaring father...

Created in Tall Stories’ unique style, the show combines storytelling, music and lots of laughs.

All music and sound effects are created live on stage by an electric viola player with an effects pedal.

Storytelling, live music and lots of laughs, in a show for everyone aged 4 and up.

‘Faultless family fare… One of the best examples of children’s theatre’ Whatsonstage.com *****

Cast:

Lucy Grace (Snail/Daughter)

Lucy has previously worked with Tall Stories on ‘Twinkle Twonkle’ which toured the US, UK and played at the Roundhouse, London. Recent credits include ‘A Tree’ (Lyric Hammersmith/Hit the Ground), ‘Blueprint’ (Write by Numbers/Bikeshed Theatre) and ‘Regeneration’ (Write by Numbers/Rich Mix). She has also written her first solo piece 'Garden' which is being developed with support from Write by Numbers and Tamasha Theatre Company.

Tim Hibberd (Whale/Dad)

Tim has worked for Tall Stories previously on ‘The Gruffalo’, ‘Mr Benn’ and ‘My Brother the Robot’ and was a member of the original devising company for ‘The Snail and the Whale’ in 2011. He has also worked with Polka Theatre on a number of shows and is the former Artistic Director of Rejects Revenge Theatre Company. He is currently to be seen as Mr Fen in CBeebies’ ‘Topsy and Tim’ (together with his own twins Tom and Natalya) and heard as Vincent Van Coconut in Disney’s ‘Art Attack’.

Charlotte Mafham (Narrator/Musician)

Charlotte trained at Arts Ed and in puppetry with Blind Summit. Previous theatre credits include: Troilus & Cressida’ & ‘Coriolanus’ (Tristan Bates); ‘Zero Point Project’ (BAC), ‘Rumpelstiltskin’ (Hiccup Theatre, UK Tour), ‘The Dark Entry’ (Canterbury Festival), ‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle’ (The Space), ‘The Just So Stories’ (The King's Head Theatre) and ‘Julius Caesar’ (The Scoop). Charlotte also plays the viola for the Whitehall Orchestra, the charity fundraising Amici Orchestra and band The Hidden Tracks.

On The Web:

Facebook: /tallstoriestheatre 
www.facebook.com/pages/The-Snail-and-the-Whale-Live

Twitter: @tallstoriesnews

Instagram: tallstories

Pinterest: /tall_stories

Tickets

Durham Gala

Friday 13th February 5.00pm

Saturday 14th February 11.00am & 1.30pm

Recommended age group: 4-10 and grown-ups.

Tickets £10 (£36 family ticket)

On Tour

February 2015

5-8 The Haymarket, Basingstoke

13-14 The Gala Theatre, Durham

15-16 MAC, Birmingham

17-18 The Corn Exchange, Newbury

20-21 The Curve, Leicester

26-27 Hall for Cornwall, Truro

March 2015

1-2 The Oakengates Theatre, Telford

3-4 The Grand Theatre, Lancaster

5-31 International Touring

April 2015

1-2 The Radlett Centre, London

3-4 Lakeside Arts Centre, Nottingham

7-8 The Wyvern Theatre, Swindon

9-10 The Gatehouse, Stafford

11-12 The Octagon, Yeovil

14-15 The Berry Theatre, Hedge End

18-19 The Ashcroft Theatre, Croydon

20-21 The Courtyard Theatre, Hereford

23-24 The Corn Exchange, Kings Lynn

25-26 Jacksons Lane, London

Preview: Gruffalo at The Theatre Royal

The Gruffalo Returns to the North East

 

Tom Crook as The Gruffalo with  Susanna Jennings as the Mouse

 The acclaimed musical stage adaptation of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s award winning picture book The Gruffalo is coming back to the Theatre Royal in June direct from a smash-hit West End season – are you ready to return to the woods? (Tues 24 – Sat 28 June 2014)

This is an opportunity to join Mouse on a daring adventure through the deep dark wood - in the search for hazelnuts - as she meets  the cunning Fox, the eccentric old Owl and the party mad Snake, and outwits them all with the story of the fabled Gruffalo. Armed with only a nut map and a little courage Mouse must make sure she doesn’t end up as dinner for these wily woodland creatures! The perfect combination of music, laughter, physical theatre and just the right touch of scary fun, The Gruffalo is the must see family show for lovers of the timeless story.

Tall Stories’ hit musical adaptation of the award winning picture book The Gruffalo, the modern classic, by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler is set to a wonderfully catchy musical score with original songs. This enchanting production continues to entertain audiences worldwide, bringing everyone’s favourite furry monster to life, live on stage. 

The Gruffalo is produced by KW & NB Ltd and created by the critically acclaimed theatre company Tall Stories - a creative force whose credits include Room on the Broom, The Gruffalo’s Child, The Snail and The Whale, Snow Dragon and My Brother The Robot. The team includes director Olivia Jacobs, creative producer Toby Mitchell, designer Isla Shaw, composers Jon Fiber & Andy Shaw and lighting designer James Whiteside. The delightful cast are: Tom Crook – at 6’5” Tom is the tallest actor to play The Gruffalo; Ellie Bell as the Mouse and Will Towler as the Predators.

Since its 2001 premiere, Tall Stories’ stage adaptation The Gruffalo has been performed across the globe in countries including Poland, Germany, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai and Chile as well as in North America from Broadway to Alaska and Canada. In the UK The Gruffalo has even been spied on the summer Festival circuit playing at the British Summertime Festival Hyde Park and Camp Bestival.

The Gruffalo appears at Newcastle Theatre Royal 24 - 28 June 2014 (Wed - Sat 10.30am, Tue – Fri 1.30pm). Tickets are £12.00 (a booking fee of 95p will apply to most tickets) and can be purchased from the Theatre Royal Box Office on 08448 11 21 21 or online at www.theatreroyal.co.uk

Website: http://www.gruffalolive.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheGruffaloLive

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Gruffalo-Live/208009172607890 

Tour:

Doncaster, Cast Tue 3 - Wed 4 Jun 01302 303 959

Buxton Opera House Fri 6 - Sun 8 Jun 0845 1272190

North Finchley, artsdepot Fri 20 - Sun 22 Jun 020 8369 5454

Newcastle, Theatre Royal Tue 24 - Sat 28 Jun 08448 11 21 21

Woking, New Victoria Theatre Tue 1 - Thu 3 Jul 0844 871 7645

Hull, New Theatre Fri 4 - Sun 6 Jul 01482 300 300

Peterborough, Key Theatre Tue 8 - Wed 9 Jul 01733 207239

Cardiff, New Theatre Thu 10 - Sun 13 Jul 02920878889

Blackpool, The Grand Theatre Tue 15 - Wed 16 Jul 01253 290 190

Inverness, Eden CourtFri 18 - Sun 20 Jul 01463 234 234

Stafford, Gatehouse Theatre Tue 22 - Wed 23 Jul01785 254 653

Preston, Charter Theatre Thu 24 - Sat 26 Jul 08448447710

Truro, Hall for Cornwall Mon 28 - Wed 30 Jul 01872 262466

King's Lynn, Corn Exchange Fri 1 - Sun 3 Aug 01553 764864

Crewe, Lyceum Theatre Tue 5 - Wed 6 Aug 01270 368 242

Dorking, Dorking Halls Thu 7 - Sat 9 Aug 01306 881717

Birmingham, Town Hall Tue 12 - Sun 24 Aug 0121 345 0600

Radlett, The Radlett Centre Tue 26 - Wed 27 Aug 01923 859291

Southend, Palace Theatre Thu 28 - Sun 31 Aug 01702 351135

Northampton, Derngate Wed 10 - Thu 11 Sep 01604 624811

Stevenage, Gordon Craig Theatre Fri 12 - Sun 14 Sep 01438 363200

Cheltenham, Everyman Theatre Tue 16 - Wed 17 Sep 01242 572573

Basingstoke, The Haymarket Thu 18 - Sun 21 Sep 01256 844244

Crawley, The Hawth Theatre Tue 23 - Thu 25 Sep 01293 553636

Scunthorpe, The Baths Hall Sun 28 - Mon 29 Sep 0844 8542776

Croydon, The Ashcroft Theatre Tue 7 - Sat 18 Oct 0208 688 9291

Winchester, Theatre Royal Thu 9 - Fri 10 Oct 01962 840 440

Coventry, Warwick Arts Centre Sat 29 Nov 2014 - Sun 4 Jan 2015 024 7652 4524