manchester

Half Term Delights or Half Term Frights?

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It seems as if we have only just got back to normal after the Christmas holidays and already the February half term break is upon us.

The half term week runs through from Monday 16th February until Friday 20th February and don’t forget that it is Pancake Day on the Tuesday. I’m a traditional sugar and lemon girl, what pancake toppings do you like?

Now, don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love spending time with the little treasures but I just find it easier and more enjoyable if I have already planned out what we are doing and where we are going.

Here are our picks of some of the best and varied, priced and free entertainment and activities for families in Manchester over the February half term holidays…

The Lowry

The Lowry offer Little Actors and Little Artists over the half term holidays. The activities run every day during half term from 11:00am until 12:30pm.

Little Actors have Frozen themed activities to bring Elsa, Anna and co to life in this fun and interactive drama workshop. Little Artists will be doing junk modelling around the theme of Michael Morpurgo’s I Believe in Unicorns. We have been to the Little Artists session before and both children really enjoyed – we made a Dorothy and a Toto. The sessions are recommended suitable for ages 5-11 and cost £3.50 per child (or £1.75 for Salford residents).

The Lowry also have I Believe in Unicorns and Singalong Frozen on in the theatres during February. Check out the website for more information.

Sale Waterside

Now, I should warn that there is a little bit of a Frozen theme to this post. Well, the children (and some of the parents…ahem) love it, so why not!

Following the same theme then, the Waterside are holding a Frozen Day on Thursday 19th February – there will be craft activities (running as part of the family club) and a singalong Frozen. The day starts at 10am and costs £5.00 to join in with the singalong version of the film. Pre-booking is advised and there will be prizes for the best Frozen themed costume. Check out Sale Waterside Family Club for more information.

Also running in the theatre is Goldilocks and The Three Bears, running at just 60 mins long and suitable for age 2 and over. Interested? For prices and times – click here.

Museum of Science and Industry

Steam, Sweat and Sewers runs daily from 14th February until 22nd February. Experience the sights, sounds and smells of Victorian Manchester. There are lots of gross but informative FREE workshops and  creative sessions. Open 10am until 5pm each day.

The activities are FREE (yipee) but make sure that you have a little bit of change on you (or well-briefed and behaved children) for the Victorian fairground rides.

Imperial War Museum

War at Sea – Jump aboard for the whole family to get creative and make something inspired by the IWM’s collections. See how far you can gaze with your very own telescope, as you design a message in a bottle. Discover which animals sailed the seas and learn some sailor slang in interactive storytelling sessions.

All of the activities at IWM are FREE but you are encouraged to make a donation.

Bury – Half Term at The Met

There are some great family shows on at The Met during half term.

Nicobobinus – suitable for children aged 6+. When Nicobobinus is magically turned to gold, he and his friend Rosie embark on a musical adventure to the Land of Dragons…

Duck in the Truck – suitable for 3-7’s. Join duck and his friends in this happy new adventure with puppetry, sing-a-long-songs and plenty of opportunities to join in along the way.

Puss in Boots – suitable for ages 4+. Patrick Lynch from Cbeebies brings this classic fairytale to life.

Salford Museum and Art Gallery

Don’t forget Chinese New Year next week…There are a few free events around the city to celebrate the year of The Ram.

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On February 18th Salford Museum and Art Gallery would like to celebrate with you by making a colourful, fire breathing, dancing dragon puppet. The event is FREE and runs on 18th February from 10:30am until 2:30pm.

Z-Arts

Popular family friendly arts venue, Z-Arts are showing Emergency Story Penguin during half term. Suitable for ages 5+ and a running time of 1 hour.

I didn’t get to see the last show by the same company, 59 minutes to Save Christmas, but reliable sources reported that it was a real cracker and not to be missed.

See the trailer For Emergency Story Penguin here:

Shows are on 18th – 22nd February at 11am, 2pm and 4pm. On Wednesday 18th February there will be a FREE Penguin Fun Day. All activities through the day will be free, however tickets for the show will still need to be paid for and booked in advance.

Enjoy your half term, stay arty, stay sane and don’t forget pancake day…

Aladdin (Dancehouse Manchester)

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Following on from last year’s pantomime success, The Dancehouse Theatre, home of the Northern Ballet School, are back and keen to grant Manchester a Christmas wish by staging timeless classic Aladdin this year.

This pantomime is a perfect opportunity for the company to showcase their dancing talents, featuring many different dance styles from bhangra to ballet, all are skilled from the teeny tiny jazz dancers through to the feisty and rhythmic crew of street dancers.

The Dancehouse Theatre and Eight Freestyle poke fun at the expected pantomime tradition, managing to put their own stamp on the magical middle eastern adventure. The genie of the evil Abanazer’s diamond ring was a bolshy Liverpudlian, which ran well with the Mancunian crowd and the final fight scene between Aladdin and Abanazer played out with lightsabers, giving the nod to all of the Star Wars fans in the audience.

Although most of the energetic dance numbers were choreographed well and the popular chart music choice was a hit with the audience, there were moments in the story where the action seemed stunted and the audience were left trying to make sense of an empty stage.

There were also some problems with the sound quality throughout the show – occasionally my ear drums were rattling as the treble was booming and just like Widow Twankey sang in the show “All About That Bass”, some adjustments did need to be made.

The cast took every opportunity to interact with their eager audience by inviting people on to the stage and encouraging all to join in with the customary pantomime sing-a-long. The use of gauze to create a starry night as Princess Jasmine and Aladdin were suspended on a magic carpet was a highlight as was the amusing version of “Take me Out” to find a suitable husband for the Princess.

The Dancehouse Theatre and Eight Freestyle certainly succeeded in entertaining the whole family, with plenty of belly laughs, Christmas sparkle and not a reality TV star in sight. Aladdin runs at just over two hours long and with ticket prices starting at a mere £30 for a family of five, it really is excellent festive value for money.

-Kristy Stott

Originally published by What’s on Stage in December 2014.

Russell Brand – Messiah Complex (Manchester Apollo)

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Russell Brand © WireImage

Russell Brand struts onto the stage with his trademark skinny leather pants, massive hair and long hippy wooden beads. A real presence. He doesn’t take himself too seriously – his whole performance is built on self irony – and he is not afraid to mock himself, expose his own failings and belittle celebrity.

He tells hilarious accounts of his experiences, accompanying them with film and projections; in all of his stories, he succeeds in sending himself up. It is all quite narcissistic, but it works because Brand is not afraid to poke fun at himself and expose his flaws – this is his appeal. Brand takes on a convincing Mancunian accent frequently during the show and straddling it with irony, he refers to himself as a “southern ponce”. The northern crowd love it.

His stand-up is sharp and he is compelling, articulate and slick. Lowering himself into the audience so that he can “examine” us all, he is confident with interacting and engaging with the crowd. He picks a few willing participants to banter with – “I’m like a vampire – I’ll only come in if you invite me”. The crowd are hysterical, many trying to grab Brand’s attention, one woman even hanging right over the circle balcony. Brand is not the Messiah, but he is the centre of adulation on this particular night at the Apollo.

Demanding a muscular fellow in the audience to “elevate” him to the stage, he begins his main show. He addresses themes of celebrity and explores the flaws in his four chosen heroes – Jesus Christ, Che Guevara, Ghandi, Malcolm X – and seeks to prove that he is a little bit like them. He is uncensored and unapologetic about his own excesses, saying of celebrity: “Why would I attack a lifestyle that plucked me from poverty and dropped me into a tumble-dryer filled with tits and money?”

Through all of the 90 minutes of Brand’s self deprecating frivolity, it is clear that he is also using his position to influence and spread a message: “Choose your heroes carefully before culture chooses them for you.”

Russell Brand is a bit like marmite – you either love him or hate him. On this particular night in rainy Manchester, he goes down a storm.

This gifted comedian and wordsmith continues his Messiah Complex world tour in Glasgow tonight.

-Kristy Stott

First published by What’s on Stage in February 2014

Dinosaur Zoo ( The Lowry, Salford)

kristobel1 Comment
date: 4 october 2013
Upstaged rating: 
Dinosaur Zoo The Lowry
Dinosaur Zoo
The Lowry

Dinosaur Zoo is an interactive and educational show, suitable for all ages, by Australian company Erth. The show aims to animate the lesser known (but equally ferocious) dinosaurs that ruled in part of the Southern hemisphere which, we are informed, is referred to as Gordwanaland.

The young audience are encouraged to interact with narrator Australian zookeeper, Lindsey Chaplin, and her dinosaur puppets from the very start, especially, those sat in ‘The Danger Zone’ at the very front!

The show maintains a remarkable sense of surprise throughout – the lifelike dinosaur puppets move convincingly, easily fuelling a child’s curiosity, nervousness and amusement in equal measures. Lindsey is our host – her address to the audience is perfectly timed, her humour and friendly approach appealing to children and adults alike.

I attended with my dinosaur-obsessed 3 year old; who despite chattering all week about the show, lost his tongue when he entered the theatre, all wide eyed on seeing the stage set with hay bales and giant flora.

I could sense that many of the children were excited and apprehensive – not knowing what to expect. And although Lindsey explained that all of the dinosaurs in the show were puppets (and you could clearly see that they were being manned) – I think that many children forgot this fact early on, which added to the magic of the show.

Dinosaur Zoo, with interaction and science at its core, is very different from any of the other dinosaur shows that I have seen, and at just 55 minutes long it is perfect for the attention span of even very young children.

My only niggle lies with the staging of the show; due to the interactive element it would definitely have benefitted from being staged in the round or in a more intimate performance space. And from watching the trailer, this is what I was expecting.

However, Erth must have recognised this as being a potential issue and so overcame this by bringing all their dinosaurs out into the foyer after the performance, so that all of the children were able to get up close and personal with their favourite from the show.

If like me, you have a dinosaur obsessed child or one that you can borrow to accompany you, Dinosaur Zoo is well worth a visit!

-Kristy Stott

Originally published by What’s on Stage in October 2013.