SPRING 2019 TOUR
EDUCATION PACK 1|Page
TABLE OF CONTENTS
• About Story Pocket Theatre • Introduction/ Summary of the Story • National Curriculum References • Resources • Full Tour Schedule • Contacts
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MICHAEL MORPURGO’S KING ARTHUR The Company Story Pocket Theatre is a company devoted to bringing both classic and original children’s stories to the stage in a magical, inventive and exciting way. Productions are centred around the art of storytelling, creating a journey for our audience that we hope will inspire a lifelong love of stories and theatre. It is also important to us that our shows engage and entertain the whole family, thereby creating an all-inclusive experience enjoyable for parents/carers and children of all ages. The company was formed in 2013 by experienced theatre professionals Alison Beattie, Jules Black and Adam Fletcher Forde. Its patron is author and former Children’s Laureate, Michael Morpurgo. Story Pocket Theatre’s first production, Arabian Nights, received 5-star reviews across the board and won the Primary Times Children’s Choice Award at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2014. That success was followed by A Pocketful of Grimms and Storyteller, Storyteller in 2015. In only its second year at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Story Pocket won a coveted ThreeWeeks Editors’ Choice Award. The Nutcracker has been playing to delighted Christmas audiences every year since 2014. Michael Morpurgo’s King Arthur thrilled audiences at Edinburgh in 2016 and around the UK since then. And Pub Quiz for Kids with Patrick Monahan was launched at Edinburgh in 2016 and has been picked up by comedy festivals across the UK. Since the first short tour of Arabian Nights in spring and summer of 2014, Story Pocket has toured to more than 100 venues across the UK including the Royal Albert Hall and the Festival Hall on London’s South Bank. It has also taken shows to Warsaw, Dubai and Geneva.
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Introduction and Summary – David Baddiel’s ANiMALCOLM
Based on David Baddiel’s bestselling children’s novel, ANiMALCOLM is a new fulllength comedy musical written by Adam Fletcher-Forde with music by David Perkins. It follows the fortunes of Malcolm who discovers a love of animals in a very first-hand way – he becomes one, several in fact. The story opens on Malcolm’s 11th birthday. His family are all animal lovers and like nothing more than to spend a day at the zoo but Malcolm doesn’t get it. He doesn’t really like animals and cannot understand why the rest of his family are so smitten by any and every creature. What he really wants for his birthday is a state-of-the-art laptop but what he gets is a pet chinchilla. His disappointment is eased when his final present is a place on the year 6 school trip but any joy is shattered when it turns out the trip is to a farm… full of animals. The children are introduced to an ancient goat, K-PAX, that the owners of the farm jokingly suggest has magical powers and tell the children they can ask him questions about their lives. A cynical Malcolm asks K-PAX why he doesn’t understand the love of animals and what must he do to like them in the same way as everyone else. As he talks to the goat, Malcolm falls asleep and is bemused and horrified to wake up and find he has been transformed into a tortoise. He quickly works out that he has had a spell put on him and that whenever he sleeps he wakes up as the last animal he saw. He learns that he has just three days before the spell becomes permanent and when the cockerel has crowed three times, he will stay as the last animal he wakes with. In his efforts to get back to being a human boy he becomes a cat, a sheep, a piglet, a chimpanzee, a pigeon and a chinchilla before he finally regains his real shape. On his weird and wonderful journey, Malcolm learns what it is like to be an animal and begins to appreciate the brilliant qualities of the animal kingdom. It is recommended for children aged 5 yrs plus. ANiMALCOLM is full of sharp and witty dialogue, ingenious puppetry, hugely energetic performances with spectacular movement and, of course, a score that reflects the characteristics of all the animals Malcolm meets along the way. It is faithful to Baddiel’s novel and will delight all who have read it and who are fans of his other children’s novels such as The Parent Agency, The Boy Who Could Do What He Liked and Birthday Boy.
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REVIEWS “I really loved it: funny, beautifully staged and the songs were cracking” David Baddiel “A really good adaptation… had the kids in stitches and super acting… absolutely hilarious” Primary Times “Thrives on detail, from vibrant minor characters to the dynamic set pieces… high energy cast…” Edinburgh Festivals Magazine “As we’ve come to expect from Story Pocket, characterisation is strong” The List
Length of show: 2 hours including interval
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National Curriculum References A vibrant, energetic and gloriously funny new musical comedy Welcome to the education pack for David Baddiel’s ANiMALCOLM presented by Story Pocket Theatre. This pack is designed as a flexible resource for teachers of Key Stage 2. It has been prepared to inspire lessons/workshops across the curriculum that will link in with David Baddiel’s ANiMALCOLM. KEY STAGE TWO Subject
ENGLISH
Curriculum
Pupils’ acquisition and command of vocabulary are key to their learning and progress across the whole curriculum. Pupils should ‘understand nuances in vocabulary choice and ageappropriate, academic vocabulary. This involves consolidation, practice and discussion of language.’
Teaching and learning suggestions
Subject
• The use of colloquialisms eg. ‘run/walk that past me’ – what ‘contemporary’ language can the children remember from the play? What other phrases can they think of that may not be literal? How would they explain common idioms and colloquialisms to an alien/an animal? Following a thought shower around the subject this could be Hot seated / role played – development of speaking and listening skills / interview techniques ENGLISH
‘pupils should become more familiar with and confident in using language in a greater variety of situations, for a variety of audiences and purposes, including through drama, formal presentations and debate.’ • Malcolm wondered why sheep continue to run away Teaching and learning from something they think is chasing them even after it suggestions has gone past them – to the point that they will then be (Upper KS2) chasing the thing they were supposed to be running away from! DISCUSS – this could form the basis of a debate and a preface to studying the behavioural differences between humans and animals (Cross reference with Science Curriculum) Curriculum
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• Present a monologue from the perspective of the different animals when they first encounter Malcolm. How are their reactions similar? How do they differ? The advantages of being a cat - DISCUSS Subject
ENGLISH
Curriculum
‘increase pupils’ store of words in general; simultaneously, they should also make links between known and new vocabulary and discuss the shades of meaning in similar words. In this way, pupils expand the vocabulary choices that are available to them when they write.
Teaching and learning To enhance the children’s understanding of characters and their experiences: suggestions
• Writing in the 1st person – What was Malcolm really imagining as he arrived at the farm? • Recount - Malcolm’s birthday, first thoughts as he awoke as a Tortoise • ‘The day I was ‘Forgotten’
Mr Barrington – what happened next? Subject
PSHE
Curriculum
‘offer a curriculum which is balanced and broadly based and which; promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils at the school and of society, and prepares pupils at the school for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life.’
Teaching and learning suggestions Upper KS2
Subject Curriculum
• Malcolm observed the animals he became operated more instinctively; they did not have to ‘learn’ like humans. How could this instinctive behaviour work in our human society? • Bjornita told Malcolm that ‘the ones you love will always be able to see through your outer shell’ Discuss. PSHE ‘This subject provides an opportunity to provide or enhance skills such as perseverance, conflict resolution, emotional intelligence, self-management, self-respect, team work.’ Both the set and costumes in ‘Michael Morpurgo’s King Arthur’ along with the innovative use of puppets provide a wealth of inspiration for projects back in the classroom. 7|Page
Teaching and learning suggestions
Subject Curriculum KS 1 & 2 Teaching and learning suggestions
Subject
Curriculum KS 1 & 2
Teaching and learning suggestions
• What were the main characteristics/behaviours of each of the animals that Malcolm became? • Using the characteristics inferred in Animalcolm, what could the animals teach humans? (Example; the ‘team work’ demonstrated in getting Malcolm home) Workshop idea; the children could work in groups and study each of the five animals then present their findings in a Balloon Debate scenario.
SCIENCE ‘Pupils might work scientifically by: identifying and grouping animals with and without skeletons and observing and comparing their movement; exploring ‘How things work’. • Analysing human movement by observing each other • Analysing movement of other animals • What muscles are responsible for which bit of the movement?
SCIENCE ‘Pupils develop understanding of the nature, processes and methods of science …asking simple questions and recognising that they can be answered in different ways…. noticing patterns, grouping and classifying things, carrying out simple comparative and fair tests and finding things out using secondary sources of information. They should draw simple conclusions and use some scientific language, first, to talk about and, later, to write about what they have found out.’ • Expanding prior knowledge to include grouping and classifying animals by the way they move • Examining the behaviours of domestic animals • Researching animals they cannot observe in the classroom • Using ICT to compare and contrast data between Domestic and Wild animals 8|Page
• Writing about and presenting their findings including explanations and conclusions
Subject Curriculum
Teaching and learning suggestions
PHYSICAL EDUCATION ‘KS1 & 2; perform dances using simple movement patterns. Perform sequences which involve a balance (on one, two and three points), a roll, travelling and a jump.’ • Children analyse the variations in movement between the animals • Children create a sequence of movements for each animal • Children combine the sequences adding in transitions
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RESOURCES www.bbc.co.uk/education ;
BBC Bitesize – Science KS1 and KS2 sections on animals,
adaptation, skeletons and muscles. www.en.wikipedia.org/Animal locomotion www.animalbehaviour.net www.kids.kiddle.co/Collective_animal_behaviour
Story Pocket Theatre: Contacts Alison Beattie – Producer
info@storypockettheatre.co.uk
07766 023898
adam@storypockettheatre.co.uk
07917 100771
All company administration Adam Fletcher-Forde – Director Creative details, marketing/press Story Pocket Theatre website:
www.storypockettheatre.co.uk
Company Twitter:
@story_pocket
Company Facebook:
Story Pocket Theatre
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