Not sure what shows are best for your child? Or are you a child at heart and feel like enjoying a bit of family entertainment?
This year’s Festival includes at least 18 different events for children of all ages. There are mimes, clowns, puppet shows, magic shows, arts and craft workshops.
There are daily puppet shows every hour on the hour from 10:00 until 17:00 at The Village Green. This is most likely one of the only family friendly events for free – unless you go to either 241:Double the Fun or Maarten Mus on their first performance days.
Workshops are available throughout festival as well – There is a Children’s Art Workshop at Oatlands Prep School everyday for R100 as well as the Children’s Arts Festival which runs for two different age groups. See page 218 of the Festival programme for more information on the Children’s Art Festival here.
Here are some of the family theatre and entertainment events that might interest you or your children. Bear in mind that this is not all of the shows and events available. For more child-friendly events, pages 216-221 and 164-169 of the Festival programme contains family theatre options.
An opportunity to make friends, craft and chocolate
Terese Marthinus wraps her hand-made chocolate delicately in tinned foil paper and ties a neat bow around it to add a finishing touch. “I love doing the decorations and creating my own design,” says Terese, a 14 year-old girl on her first day at the Children’s Arts Festival.
The Children’s Arts Festival gives parents the option of booking their children in at St Andrew’s Prep from 9am-5pm daily or, if their children are pre-schoolers, for half a day. Children are divided into three age groups and taken to various stations which involve teaching them a craft, the basics of playing a musical instrument or learning a new form of dance.
The chocolate-making and decorating workshop has been the first activity of the day.
Terese will move on to a pencil craft workshop where she will learn to make a colourful clay creature to decorate the end of her pencil. The afternoon’s activities include lunch, a family theatre show and a third workshop, which usually involves some movement. The show on the opening day was Lake, a show directed by Daniel Buckland.
After chatting to a few of the youngsters, I notice that what excites them can vary substantially.
Some are excited about busting a new move as part of the dance workshops, while others can’t wait for break times when they can throw around their world cup soccer ball. For Damian Tsikos, after enduring the craft workshops, the tuck-shop at break time is his highlight.
Perhaps one of the best things about the Children’s Art Festival is the opportunity for children like Terese to make new friends, learn new skills and express themselves creatively.
Cindy Renard, coordinator of the Children’s Festival for the past seven years, assures parents that the children who attend this event will be fully supervised throughout the day. There are still some spaces available on the Children’s Arts Festival programme, but another option is the ASSITEJ Family Fare where parents can accompany their children in a range of activities.
– By Kayla Lidstone and Sarah Kingon
