Ad disclosure: We were given free tickets to the show for the purpose of this post.
Yesterday James, Georgie and I headed into the city centre to see the live show What the Ladybird Heard, based on the picture book by Julia Donaldson & Lydia Monks. Unfortunately our Lydia couldn’t join us as she came down with the chickenpox over Christmas. Surprise, surprise… not!
We were invited along to a press breakfast before the show, and it was lovely to catch up with some local bloggers – and enjoy some very tasty pastries! Georgie definitely enjoyed the breakfast… despite having had her cereal before we left she still managed to polish off a big yoghurt, most of a danish, and a bottle of fruit shoot to wash it down!
It wasn’t long before it was time to find our seats, which were up in the circle. We’ve been to the Town Hall a few times now but this was the first time we’ve sat in the circle, which was nice – the view of the stage is pretty good from any seat at the Town Hall, from our experience.
The show itself is really enjoyable for both adults and children. The story was told in quite a neat way, with the farmhands talking to the audience (we were all visitors at the farm) about how the ladybird saved the farm from being robbed. They then offered to act out the story of how the animals worked together to save the day for the audience.
There was plenty of audience participation, catchy songs, and some quite funny moments. The show has four main cast members, with at least one additional person behind the scenes, who popped out as the policeman at the end.
Hefty Hugh & Lanky Len made an amusing double act of slightly incompetent crooks, who were attempting to rob the farm of the “fine prize cow” with “a map and a key and a cunning plan”.
Julia Donaldson’s rhyming couplets were transformed perfectly into lovely songs, which had the audience clapping, singing, and dancing along. CDs of the songs were available for purchase, and I wish I had picked one up as I know the girls would enjoy listening to it at home. As for Lydia Monks’ illustrations, the sets and costumes were spot on to match the style of the book. Some of the animals were puppets, with others being cleverly “created” out of stuff laying around the farm.
It was quite impressive how they managed to adapt what is quite a short picture book into a decent length show, without it feeling too drawn out at any point. The children in the audience were engaged throughout, and only the very smallest of the audience showed signs of unrest.
We highly recommend this show to any families who are fans of the book, it is very entertaining & a great adaptation. When asked what she thought of the show, Georgie gave me a big thumbs up and said she liked the songs.
What the Ladybird Heard is on at Town Hall, Birmingham until January 11th, with several shows each day, and a relaxed performance on Sun 8th Jan. Tickets start at £12 & can be purchased from the Town Hall website.
