KarenLast week Squidge and I went to his very first theatre performance. Aside from sleeping through Cirque du Soleil at 8 months old he hasn’t ever been to a live show.
I figured the afternoon could go one of two ways. Either Squidge would fidget and wriggle, wail and moan throughout, or he would be mesmerised by the presence of his favourite TV characters. I asked Facebook to wish me luck and off we went.
We parked about five minutes walk from The Palace Theatre in Manchester where the event was being held. Deciding not to take the pram turned out to be a good idea, if you discount the fact that my arm was nearly dead by the time we arrived! There is limited space for strollers etc. but if you need to take one it is certainly doable.
We collected our tickets and made our way over to the photo board. I’m sure it’s got a more professional name than that but you know what I mean…
From there we were seated in the theatre and our seats were great. Next to the aisle and only about ten rows back from the stage. There theatre filled up with excites toddlers and exasperated, nervous parents, and the show began.
The show was vaguely similar to the TV programmes in content, with the Sunshine Baby title sequence playing at the beginning, and the narrator speaking. Aside from that though the content was based largely around audience particpation as we followed dance moves and answered questions.
We followed the Teletubbies as they explored Teletubbyland, encountering the Noo-Noo, the Tubby Toaster and the Tubby Phone along the way. There was lots of giggling, singing, dancing and fun throughout the performance and Squidge sat still for almost the entire time! I’m certain the snacks we had with us contributed to his contentment but he spent a lot of time shouting ‘HIYA!’ as loud as he could, and waving frantically at his large colourful friends up on the stage.
This is the perfect introduction to theatre for any teletubby fan. The audience was noisy and wriggly and giddy but in a great way. The show was immersive and enjoyable, and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Teletubbies Live to pre-school parents.
Teletubbies Live! Is currently touring the UK and you can find the dates here.
