The Woman in Black at The Grand Theatre, Blackpool

I have read the book, seen the film and felt compelled to watch the theatre adaption of The Woman in Black at The Grand Theatre, Blackpool. The stage production is celebrating 25 years in the West End and is described as the “most terrifying live theatre experience in the world” - The apprehension built before we had even arrived at the theatre!

The performance begins with unexpected humour with little indication of the chilling darkness that followed – there is an assumption and initial puzzlement that there is something wrong with the sound I found myself learning forward this was only the start of being physically drawn into the story. In true terms, the story was a masterpiece of acting, eerie lighting and evocative sound. With the stage set with a minimum of props, an effective use of imagery and suggestion take the audience on a terrifying journey.  

To witness the whole audience react to the build-up of tension and fear provides a very different and memorable experience of theatre. One teenage audience member covered her ears, clenching her head in her hands which summed up the increased, hold your breath tension increasing the need to know what happened.

I would highly recommend seeing this whilst it’s staged in Blackpool, I would consider it great entertainment for my teenagers, for my younger teen the matinee performance would give her a longer recovery time in daylight or a perfect night out for adults.  

Tickets were received for review on Monday 30th March 2015.

Review: Fired 4 U, Walton le Dale, Preston

Review written by Nisbah at Five adventurers who visited Fired 4 U in Walton le dale, Preston with children aged 3, 5, 8 and 12 years.

Summer holidays are fantastic but the constant need to think of things to do with the kids can sometimes be a little overwhelming both mentally and on ones pocket.  I'm always looking for new, local things to try with my little adventurers and when we were asked to review a pottery/clay painting attraction, Fired 4 U, we jumped at the opportunity.

Fired 4 U is a lovely tea room/coffee shop setting in Walton le Dale  just outside of Preston. I particularly liked the quirky feel of the shop with wall murals including a handprint tree of customers. Compared with other pottery painting shops/studios we have been too, Fired 4 U is very relaxed.  The owner Jane is engaging with the children and parents a like.  Our Raihan takes a little time to get along with new people but Jane made him feel at ease straight away.

On arrival to the shop, Jane shows you what different things the children can try from pottery painting to clay based activities.  I have taken Maya painting before but wanted to see how older and younger children would find that activity. We attended with my adventurers aged 3 and 5 and my nephews aged 8 and 12.  Jane explains to the children how and what they need to do with the paints and other ideas to decorate the items once the original painting is done.

 

For the review we were going to try some pottery painting, Maya and Raihan chose a dragon fly and my nephews chose a squirrel and mug.  The kids had a great time with the activity.  Feedback from my nephews who hadn't done this activity was that it was really cool and they really enjoyed it.  I asked if they would do it again and from their responses and eyeing up other ideas of things to decorate I think they will be back soon.

Whilst we were at the shop there was also a party taking place, I thought this looked and was a great idea.  The children all were having a great time and they would all make an receive your own decorated plate as a memory of attending a party.

Fired 4 U offer a range of activities for the children to get involved in.  There's no restriction in terms of ages as babies can take part in the clay/hand printing ideas.  Preschool children and older ones can try their hand at pottery painting and the clay activities sound really appealing.  They also running a number of activities for the school holidays so it may be worthwhile to look into these, full details are here. Jane is very flexible so if you had specific requirements, I would recommend a quick call and I'm sure Jane would be able to accommodate your needs.

What we loved

Different: Doing the same activities with your children can end up be very boring for both parties.  This activity is not something you would do often but it's great as a treat/special occasion or some quality time over the summer holidays.  In addition, the children will finish with an item which they can keep.  My nephew made his dad a mug and he was so excited to be able to give his dad a gift.

Creativeness: Maya is really creative and this type of activity highlights that art knows no bounds.  We can be creative with such a number of mediums and helps children experiment with new things.

Fired 4 U: Compared to the three previous pottery places I have taken the children, this was the most laid back setting.  They also have a number of things that none of the others have, including stamps, stencils, special paints for writing.  It made the decorating much more fun, including some muffins on Raihan's dragonfly.  Apparently it was the dragonfly's dinner that he was carrying on his back!

 


Pricing: whilst the activity does cost, it was as reasonably priced as can be for such an activity and it was the cheapest place we have done the activity.

Uniqueness: aside from my need to try different things, gift buying is my next favourite thing.  I think any of these gifts would make fantastic presents for grandparents/family members so you can get the children to have a fun afternoon and have a present to give someone at the end.  Also, this would make a great present for a child.  Experience presents help instil the idea that there is no need to have a physical present but trying new things helps a child develop.

Things to be aware of:

Attention: Raihan is often away with the fairies and getting him to paint/let it dry and paint again proved to be a task in itself.  For children 5 and over I think it's perfect, that said Raihan did enjoy it, and keeps showing anyone whose interested photos of his masterpiece.

Age: Zayn is as nosey as they come and would be in and out everything.  We didn't take him with us as he would be a little menace.  I had taken Raihan when he was that age and he was happy enough to watch Maya.  Remember the setting does not have lots of space and the activity does last a couple of hours.

Overall, I think this is a great activity to do with your children at any time and will be a definite boredom buster in summer holidays. It's one of the activities that children will not have done/likely to do and it does make a nice treat.  It's not the cheapest activity but given the cost of things such as the cinema these days I would rather spend that money on doing something that the kids will remember for a long time!

To read more about the range of activities or add your own review on Fired 4 U click here 

Private Peaceful Liverpool Playhouse

A one actor show with minimal scenery tells the moving story of Michael Morpurgo's Private  Peaceful, Tommo is a young soldier in the First World War acted by Andy Daniels  This is the adaptation from the Blue Peter prize winning book. The powerful portrayal of the actor plays out each instrumental character of his family and beyond as he reflects on earlier memories.
We follow him through his first day at school where he meets a bullying teacher to joining up and his role in fighting at war. The complexities of emotions involved in relationships are all beautifully performed. The actor’s quick switch between characters is admirable and engaging providing visualisations of the characters he played through his portrayal. The stories of family life, the loss of his father and the events which lead him to join up to fight captivated the audience. In the interval the actor stayed on stage for the whole time, this caused some speculation as to why but on reflection this shows his commitment to the character and is pivotal to telling the story.
The sound and light effects filled the theatre and are vivid reminders as the atrocities of the war unfold, the story of family life back home carry on with letters arriving, the letter tucked into his pocket closest to his heart. The description of the trench conditions although heard before I found myself recoiling from the appalling conditions described as he attacked the unseen rats in rain filled trenches.
I wish I could tell you how it ended, but I'd be cheating you of the unravelling story which has to be seen to be appreciated. Attending with teenagers it's harder to predict their reaction, enjoyed isn't the right word; it held their attention, moved us all and provided a lot to talk about afterwards. We enjoyed the performance yet it would seem wrong to say we enjoyed the story, the tragedy of war stories, of lives lost are painful reminders of the history painted in such a simple yet enthralling production the memories of this will stay with us far longer than any other performance.
The age 8+ is good guidance, there were also couples attending and this was definitely not just a family show. All credit to the actor who performed for the whole duration, he commandeered the stage.

Tickets were received by Mumsnet Lancashire for review in Liverpool on 8th March  2014. The tour returns to the North West in Manchester 7th-10th May 2014.