Another packed weekend...

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Yesterday was a treat as once again I got to see my “Brave and brilliant,”* actors perform at the Hepworth.  In the afternoon they were “LivingBooks,” quoting from the writings and conversations of sculptors to entertain and enlighten visitors to the gallery.  In the evening Brin and his Band of Everyday Heroes were well met for one last time…they were warmly complimented by many for being generally impressive and I was immensely proud of both casts, many of whom have juggled so many projects for YTYT recently and who were, as ever, absolute class acts.

However today I got to do something completely different as I got chance to learn about something I have never tried before.  I spent my Sunday with some of Sapphire and the lovely Charlotte learning all things puppetry.  It was so nice to spend the day not having to manage a million variables, not being responsible for every element of the day.  It was also excellent to leave the workshop with new skills and ideas…but I think perhaps the best bit of the day was seeing the YTYT members that took part in an entirely new light…who would have known that Sara would have been so good at moving the puppet’s feet in a way that made the movement look entirely believable, who would have guessed that Ben would be a genius at lip synching…who would have anticipated that Sam, Tom and Abbie would be able to make a frog beat box!!  

From a standing start all the young people in the room really got to grips with this fascinating craft and even the most uncertain at first gained confidence and prowess.  We now have a clear method for how to bring our Frog Prince to life and turn a puppet into an engaging, entertaining character…I’m really looking forward to passing on all that we learnt to the rest of Sapphire when we start rehearsing with our puppet in earnest tomorrow night.


*Review from a Litfest audience member

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