Claytime
Sun 14 Julindefinitearticles present a show made for and with 3 – 6 year olds.
Each Claytime is totally unique – creating its own world, its own characters and its own stories drawn directly from the audience. Truly interactive theatre at its most playful and engaging.
Claytime has developed from a philosophy of making “open” theatre shows where the audience are actively involved in the creation of the story. The idea originated from Sally Todd’s extensive work with early years children in artist’s residencies in nurseries, informed by the work of Reggio Emilia. Her work with children is child-centred, process led and focused on developing children’s ideas and imaginations.
How it works: After exploring the medium of clay through clowning, two artists ask the young audience for ideas for characters, settings and stories which are then developed immediately. Based on this input, the company then improvises a play. Each play is unique to that specific audience. The piece culminates with a short on-stage workshop where the children have their own opportunity for some hands-on clay time. At the end the children’s objects are gathered together with the name of their story made from clay, this is then photographed and the picture sent back to the venue.
Claytime has toured extensively throughout the UK plus Ireland, Denmark, Iceland, Lebanon and USA visiting schools, theatres, festivals and museums – over 600 performances to date.
indefinitearticles theatre company was started in 1995 by sculptor Sally Todd and puppeteer Steve Tiplady. They believe that a theatre that is live, and lets its audience know it, is the medium’s trump card over its more technological rivals. The company devise theatre for all ages using objects, materials and shadows. ‘At the heart of our work is the transformation of ordinary and everyday things into the extraordinary…’
