I recently had the utter privilege of attending a ‘Tatwood Puppets’ show “Microbodyssey.” I’m all for educational shows that are tons of fun too, so I was looking forward to seeing what this show was all about. And now I can tell you. In one word. Incredible.
This 45 minute show was created by Kerrin Tatman and Matt Wood and is bursting with lifelike (and hilarious) puppets, catchy songs and plenty of interactivity for the kids (and grown ups too!) We were taken on a voyage of discovery by Brenda; a huge, handmade puppet who was our tour guide into the hidden world of microbes. She was joined by Charles, her charming lab assistant who was excellent at explaining a pretty complex topic in a way that everybody understood.
We started by shrinking down to the size of a microbe so that we could clearly see what was going on in this fascinating world. My children (8 and 4) fully bought into the imaginative elements of this show and were both enthusiastically clapping, chanting and performing the actions that Charles led us through. They especially loved being referred to as “microbe enthusiasts!”
The use of different types of puppets was wonderful – we adored the talking (and blinking) Brenda and the use of shadow puppets to represent the happenings inside Brenda’s stomach. Some of the microbe related topics we learnt about were: digestion, how medicine works, the differences between bacteria and viruses, Alexander Fleming and the discovery of penicillin, and new ways to fight bacteria without using antibiotics (I’ll give you a hint… it has to do with phages!)
The show was peppered with songs we joined in with, opportunities to touch the various puppets as they travelled through the audience, dance, interactivity and jokes. It was highly accessible to my 4 year old and my 8 year old, they both got a lot from it and the adults were raving about it at the end too… no mean feat to satisfy a wide range of audience ages in one fell swoop!!
The icing on the cake was when Kerrin and Matt invited the children backstage to see how the puppets work, once the show had finished. It was a lovely touch and the children were so excited to see behind the scenes. All in all, we had a brilliant time and would highly recommend this show to anyone with children who values the type of learning that feels like so much fun, you can’t quite believe you’ve been educated too!
And a mention really must go to the lovely venue Kardomah94 in Hull. It was intimate and cosy with a great view of the stage and fabulous staff. Unsurprisingly, my children particularly enjoyed the ice creams they got to take in with them.
Look out for Tatwood Puppets at Edinburgh Fringe where they’ll be showcasing another of their shows ‘Cabaret of Curiosities’ which, I have no doubt, will be just as captivating as ‘Microbodyssey.’
Edinburgh Fringe Show: Cabaret of Curiosities and Microbodyssey
Website: https://www.tatwoodpuppets.co.uk/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tatwoodpuppets/
Venue Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kardomah94/?ref=br_rs