Wonderful Beast has delivered interactive shows, workshops and intergenerational projects for thousands of school children nationwide in a variety of partnerships, including with English Touring Opera (ETO), Association for Suffolk Museums, Suffolk Artlink, Creative Futures (London), and many more. It has worked in India bringing private and slum school children together in workshops and an unforgettable performance of Little Red Chunni, which launched the International Jaipur Festival 2007.
Almost all of Wonderful Beast’s productions involve workshops with schools; the most recent project, I Am a Woodwose (2019) partnered with eight Suffolk schools and was inspired by Thea Smiley’s play The Last Woodwose, which the children attended as the culmination of the project.
Almost all of Wonderful Beast’s productions involve workshops with schools; the most recent project, I Am a Woodwose (2019) partnered with eight Suffolk schools and was inspired by Thea Smiley’s play The Last Woodwose, which the children attended as the culmination of the project.
CHILDREN'S COMMENTS on 'I AM A WOODWOSE' (2019)
'It was breath-taking. I would love to be a woodwose and show people what is happening to the earth.'
'I loved all the music and sound effects, especially as it was all made by instruments and the vocalist, no digital sound effects.'
'I loved all the music and sound effects, especially as it was all made by instruments and the vocalist, no digital sound effects.'
early years (0–3)
Since 2015, in a partnership with Mid Suffolk District Council and with the support of Snape Maltings (previously Aldeburgh Music) and Suffolk Libraries, Wonderful Beast has developed and delivered two immersive music theatre productions for babies and toddlers with their parents and carers. Both pieces, Orla and the Sun (2015–18) and Orla’s Moon (2017–18) have toured rural libraries, community halls, theatres, an early years festival and venues accessible to families. All performances were free and all families were given a free CD of the songs in the show they attended.
