A HISTORY OF PINOCCHIO MAKING MUSIC

The Pinocchio most of us know is from the Walt Disney version, where the mischievous marionette famously fibs his way out of trouble. But the Disney film is a much lighter version than what Pinocchio’s Italian author originally had in mind. His name was Carlo Lorenzini, a journalist and author born in 1826 who spent his boyhood in the Tuscan town of Collodi, eventually taking its name as his pen name.

Pinocchio’s first appearance was in 1881 in serialised instalments for a children’s magazine and was a huge hit with readers. The original story has a much naughtier Pinocchio, and a much nastier Fox and Cat, with the pesky Pinocchio even being turned into a donkey at one point!

Two years later, due to popular demand the full novel came out under the title, ‘The Adventures of Pinocchio’ and Pinocchio got a second chance - thanks to his good heart, he turned from naughty to nice, finally becoming a real boy.

Carlo Collodi died before Pinocchio became a household name. Looking back, he was an Old Joe with words instead of wood, whose beloved puppet is still reminding us just what it means to learn from our mistakes.

Today, Pinocchio fans can visit the Pinocchio Park in Collodi - created in the 1950s, it has lots of sculptures, including this one of the Fox and the Cat from the original story - or as we know them from today’s show, Mr. Fox and Lady Cat!

DIDYOU KNOW?

At the Pinocchio Park in Collodi, Tuscany you can see lots of statues and sculptures of Pinocchio, like this one!

The past decade has seen a surge of actormusician shows all over the UK - that is, shows where the performers also become musicians on the stage, and often where the instruments are woven into the story itself. The popularity of the actor-muso show has grown over the years to become one of the hottest styles of live theatre around.

The magic of an actor-musician show comes from the joy of the artistry involved. You’ve heard of a triple-threat? Performers who can act, dance AND sing. Well, many actor-musicians are quadruple-threats. It’s an incredible skill to master, but one that can bring as much joy to the actors onstage as the audiences watching the action.

In this performance of Pinocchio, prepare to be wowed by our amazing performers who are so versatile and talented; using their instruments to reinforce the story of the little wooden boy, with the sheer electricity of live carnival music.

DIDYOUKNOW?

IntheoriginalPinocchio series,hedoesn’thave hisfamousgrowing nose!

DID

YOU KNOW?

There are translations of Pinocchio in around 240-260 languages, making it one of the most translated books in the world!

OVER TO YOU!

See if you can find Pinocchio and all his friends in this word search but watch out, there could be a foe in there too..

Grab your colouring pencils and let’s get creative with some colouring in! Copy the picture on the front of this programme, or give Swallowfire a whole new look and colour him in any way you like.