Recycling

 My child took the lime light!

This play had far too may elements, it was bilingual, it had a talking owl and a rabbit. There was a fairy telling the story, there were other voices coming from backstage and you couldn't make out if they were in a forest or a garden, as there was a garden wall! There was live music too, which was a plus, as kids love the guitar.

Aside from that, my son, Lyon was into it, he was enjoying the story, and as was relatively relaxed and not his restless self.  

We talk a lot about recycling at home and he enjoys going to the recycling bins to dispose of our rubbish.  So, it wasn't a great surprise when he took to the stage to pick up the rubbish that had been spread purposely around the stage.

For him, it felt normal to get up on stage and start picking up the rubbish, I guess because he sees me up there too.  Anyway, for what ever reason he felt propelled to get up there!

Here Lyon is taking the lime light!

But in the end, he stayed up there throughout the performance, 

and luckily for him the actress didn't seem to mind.

GORI GORI

 Gori Gori

For me this was a subtle way to introduce the subject of death to a small child.  Most children experience the loss of a grandparent early on, and this was such a simple, yet beautiful way to explain grief. The cast was made up of two actors, they used primarily wood, wooden puppets, instruments and the wheel that was used to tell the story was entirely made from wood. A beautifully crafted wooden wheel, which turned as the story unfolded. 

Lyon was practically hypnotized by this wheel and did not wander off even for a second, they had him totally engrossed and us too.

The two actors, I guess they were kind of clowns, who told the story were brilliant! This was a hit for me and I will remember this experience for a very long time! 

Stories and songs - Water, animals and other simple things

 

Songs about water in Almagro

Today we went to a theater in Almagro, Castilla La Mancha. This theater is a tad off the beaten track, an obscure little place with animal sculptures in the garden, a children's`play area and a swimming pool. We could see ashes on the ground, in what looked like a gathering around a campfire from the previous evening.  The theater itself "La Veleta" Weather Vane,  it's small but inviting and thoughtfully decorated.  

The highlight of the show was an interactive activity, whereby a long piece of paper was placed on the floor. My son rushed to sit down, to find out what we would be doing. We were told to imagine the long piece of paper as a river, and we were given crayons to draw, my son grabbed one and immediately began to draw, one of the other parents looked cross that he had started without instruction, but no amount of persuasion from me could stop him.  

Moments later we were instructed to draw along to the music, dots and then circles and so on.  The story teller then handed out silk paper leaves, flowers and butterflies with some glue. Lyon loved this activity, but I'm not sure he was paying much attention to the story and I also don't recall what it was about exactly, but I did enjoy watching him be creative.

By the time the activity had finished and we returned to our seats, Lyon had had enough and wanted to leave. So we left the darkness of the theater behind us and escaped into the sunshine.  Lyon is only 2 and a half and he IS able to watch a show all the way through, usually, but on this occasion when the story teller wasn't playing any kind of instrument, Lyon would wander off!  So, from this I have learnt more so than ever, that music is a powerful tool and I MUST used the Ukulele more!