TEACHER RESOURCES
ABOUT THE PLAY No one remembered how she came to the woods, but all knew it was right. Wild is based on the book by the same name by Emily Hughes. This vibrant, funny and engaging picture book tells us the story of Wild, a child who is brought up in the wild woods with the animals. In the Unicorn’s richly visual production, puppetry and skilled physicality will bring the woods and animals to life; the plants and trees bend to accommodate Wild; the river runs fast and flowing, carrying Wild along with it. Life in the woods is fluid and full of energy. Wild is in harmony with the woods and with all the creatures who live there. The animals have taught her all she needs to know: the birds taught her how to speak Kraa Kraa, the bears taught her how to eat, and the foxes taught her how to play. And she understood, and she was happy. But one day other animals – humans – came into the woods: a famous scientist and his wife. They capture Wild and decide to take her from the woods to their home, where they study her and teach her to be human. They found her strange and she found them strange too. We see what happens to Wild as she is brought inside into the ‘civilised’, human world. The humans do everything wrong: they try to tame her hair, they put her in clothes she finds restricting, and try to teach her their language. And Wild does everything wrong for the humans too; the way she eats, where she sleeps, how she plays, everything she does is wrong. The human world is rigid and unyielding, full of straight lines and sharp corners. When Wild pushes things aside they don’t spring back into place like the trees and the vines of the woods; instead they break, or they hurt her. Wild does not understand this world and becomes deeply unhappy. But she knows that enough is enough, and that something has to change. The end of the piece will see Wild escape back to the world which is right for her and that she is right for – the woods. Everyone remembered how she left, and all knew it was right. Because you cannot tame something so happily wild...
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