Greg Hanson playing Bernard the Birder, with Bob the Bearded Tit sitting on his head!

 

Project Patron, writer Mark Cocker of “Birds and People” fame, says “The Famous Five Birds project brings people nearer to nature”

Top flight children’s entertainment

Waveney & Blyth Arts brand new entertainment for five to ten year olds and their adults, Famous Five Birds, will be staged at 2 pm Friday 16^th August at The Cut arts centre, 8 New Cut, Halesworth.

Famous Five Birds will then go on tour to other arts and community venues in the Waveney and Blyth valleys.

Greg Hanson from The Keeper’s Daughter theatre company, who describe their style as “big, fast, and imaginative”, stars as the comic character Bernard the Birder, an eccentric ornithologist, whose pantomime performance includes impressive impressions of the five birds: bitterns, bearded tits, barn owls, marsh harriers, and nightingales, using masks made by former Madame Tussauds model maker Maggie Campbell.

Greg adds to his amazing antics with abilities learnt when he studied at the International School of Storytelling before joining The Keeper’s Daughter about whom the Diss Express said ‘There can be few small theatre companies around today able to rival the wit, originality and vigour of The Keeper’s Daughter.’

Famous Five Birds starts with fabulous nature film and photographs that wildlife photographer David Tipling has kindly let Waveney & Blyth Arts use for free.

Then, when Bernard the Birder has done his impressions, he becomes the conductor of an audience bird orchestra who use percussion, sound effects, and voices, to recreate bitterns booming, bearded tits “pinging”, barn owls screeching, and marsh harriers yelping!

The orchestra then features in a special Famous Five Birds song written by composer and pianist Nathan Williamson, with words by RSPB poet Matt Howard.

The finale follows: a sensational fifteen minute Famous Five Birds shadow puppet show performed by Meg Amsden, Artistic Director of Nutmeg Puppet Company with a stunning, specially written and recorded soundtrack, again composed by Nathan Williamson, and played by Suzy Angelus on violin, Vicky Uff on cello, Jordan Wiseman on trombone, Jozef Gwizdala on guitars, Clare Mackney on flute, Emily Heldreich on oboe, and the composer himself on piano.

Tickets are available by ringing 01728 648 281 and must be pre-booked as places are limited.

The Famous Five Birds children’s entertainments are all part of Waveney & Blyth Arts project to get children more interested in nature and the project was made possible thanks to grants from the Heritage Lottery funded Touching the Tide project, the Broads Authority’s Sustainable Development Fund, and Essex & Suffolk Water’s Branch Out fund.

To find out more about the Famous Five Birds project and the children’s and family entertainments on tour this August and September email Jan Dungey at [email protected], ring Jan on 01986 895227, or check out www.waveneyandblytharts.com

 

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