School holidays are finally here. Long, lazy mornings and no lunchboxes!! Woohoo!!!!!!!
BUT…
I have fast learnt that my kids need a bit of structure during their break. Sure, a little relaxation and free time is important, but activities to keep us all from climbing the walls is really important.
My kids have long held a bit of an obsession with puppets. Sock puppets? Youtube clips? A home made puppet show stage? They have even put together a lengthy ‘concert’ in which they pulled out their best ventriloquist moves and we had to do the classic parent pretend trick of claiming we couldn’t see their wildly, wiggling lips.
So it was a no brainer when we were asked to come along to see The Junior Mighty Little Puppet Show. We absolutely loved the show last year and it was terrific to be able to attend as part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. I again marvelled at the clever, unique concept of staging a different ad lib performance at every show. It is completely interactive and the kids in the audience are the ones who design the puppets and suggest the themes and direction for each act. The performers take a character and run with it and you just have no idea where you are about to go.
My little one wildly waved her arms about and was selected to ‘design’ her own Rita (the name given to the puppets). She thought she was fabulous and loved how the puppeteer then breathed life into her very own creation. Kids are asked questions which creates the story behind each Rita, and encouraged to help with all the sound effects. I will admit that I was a whispering tree, a snapping monster and I really brought my ‘oooooooooooooo’ and ‘aaaaaaaaahhhhhh’ A game to the theatre.
The show starts with 3 separate stories and the crowd gets to vote which story you see through until the end. Whilst it is ultimately for the kids, we we were laughing along with them all and were fast swept up in the stories. I also loved the opportunity to be so up close and personal. The venue is The Powder Room in The Melbourne Town Hall and really is just a room. You are so close to live theatre; such an incredible experience for the kids to see and be a part of the performance.
This really is affordable fun and a memory maker for the kids. It is just an hour or so in duration which makes it manageable for the little ones. My kids were the absolute perfect ages and they barely took their shining eyes off the stage for the whole show.
If you are interested, make sure you click here to get your tickets. But make sure you get them FAST as this show has sold out over the last few years at The Comedy Festival. You don’t want to miss out on meeting the likes of Old Bob (the red Rita above) and Donald Botherbottom (in the yellow). Tickets are priced between $17 and $24 and you also have a great chance to meet the Rita’s after the show.
And never, NEVER miss the opportunity for a quick photo on the red carpet in an incredibly beautiful building.
