Visiting the storytelling tent at Art in Action is always a magical and inspiring experience for all ages. This year, we have new storytelling from Rachel Chalkley with an Arthurian legend and the Pumpkin Players with Arabian Nights. Anna Beecher returns with another delightful Grimms tale and we welcome back Alice Cooper with a new story from the Australian bush.
Times: 11.00am, 12noon, 1.30pm, 3.00pm and 4.00pm daily – see the 2015 programme below.
Stories are open to all ages, and will run throughout the day. Please see the timetable for further information. There will be a charge of £2 per adult and £1 per child for each story. Children 5-15 years. All under 5s must be accompanied by an adult.
Anna Beecher
Following the successes of Hans My Hedgehog and The Singing Springing Lark Anna Beecher returns to Art in Action with another warm, irreverent take on a Grimm Tale. Iron Jon is a story celebrating wildness and embracing risk. A boy defies his parents, unlocks a cage and unleashes a wild man. So begins an incredible adventure… A storyteller, performance maker and award-winning poet, Anna creates work which is surprising, magical and honest. Recent pieces includes Glow, a poetic sensory experience for families at artsdepot, The Surplus, a new play for young people commissioned by The Young Vic Theatre and Living Things at Battersea Arts Centre.
Alice Cooper
Alice is a performer and theatre-maker from Sydney, now based in Edinburgh. Through performance, she attempts to transform the everyday into sources of wonderment. She has recently been commissioned to make a solo social history piece for the Harlow Playhouse to debut in late 2015. Her show, Waves, began life at Art in Action in 2013 and has since toured the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, the Perth Fringe, Australia and was programmed for prestigious Imaginate Festival, Edinburgh. She is currently Associate Artist with Imaginate and is engaged with projects
through Creative Carbon Scotland. This year Alice will be telling The Kelly’s Bush Green Ban, a story about the historical fight to preserve the Australian bush and also a story about 11 year-old Billy, his love of cricket and his love for a local girl called Jenny.
Rachel Chalkley
Former teacher and recent convert to professional storytelling, Rachel Chalkley has traded in stories throughout her life. She is passionate about the way stories can ignite
the imagination in children and adults alike. After attending classes at the International School of Storytelling, Rachel has now progressed to telling stories for a living. For this, her first appearance at Art in Action, Rachel is presenting Percival and the Holy Grail, based on the Arthurian legend The Fisher King. It sees Percival, a novice knight, set out on his life’s journey to complete the ultimate quest and find the Holy Grail. However, as he grows from worldly to spiritual maturity the Grail takes on a whole new meaning and the key question looms large – who does the Holy Grail serve?
Pumpkin Players
The Pumpkin Players are a Londonbased company creating original drama and new writing at festivals around the UK. They also provide workshops and performances for schools and communities. The Players bring together artists from many performance disciplines, such as costume, performance, writing and art. This year their story will be taken from the fabled One Thousand and One Arabian Nights, an ancient collection of tales from the Islamic Golden Age. Of the many (1001!) stories they have chosen The Most Mystical, Magical, Miraculous Horse. This follows the fortune of a headstrong princess, a woodcutter, and a flying wooden horse. Expect a flamboyant and interactive story! Full of perils and adventure, love and disguise, it will take you on a journey to the East and back…
| Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
| 11.00 |
Rachel Chalkley |
Alice Cooper |
Anna Beecher |
Pumpkin Players |
| 12.00 |
Pumpkin Players |
Anna Beecher |
Rachel Chalkley |
Alice Cooper |
| 1.30 |
Anna Beecher |
Pumpkin Players |
Alice Cooper |
Anna Beecher |
| 3.00 |
Alice Cooper |
Rachel Chalkley |
Pumpkin Players |
Rachel Chalkley |
| 4.00 |
Pumpkin Players |
Alice Cooper |
Rachel Chalkley |
Anna Beecher |