The Snail and the Whale

What a lovely way to end half term, me and my family visited The Lowry to see The Snail and The Whale. It was fantastic and we had a lovely time.

Out and About Mummy recently ran a Facebook competition thanks to The Lowry, giving away a family ticket to see the show. Luckily, we were offered tickets too and we’re so excited!

The Snail and The Whale live stage show was inspired by the book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, a favourite in our house! If you haven’t read The Snail and the Whale you definitely should! It follows the story of a small snail who desperately wants to see the world. He feels so small and insignificant, unlike the great big Whale. The show was produced by Tall Stories Theatre Company who love to bring great stories to life for audiences of all ages.

I’m always a little apprehensive taking three children to the theatre, my youngest are only just two. Toddlers don’t like to sit still for a long time, but I didn’t need to worry!

The show was full of music and laugher. There was plenty of audience participation which was fantastic for little ones! The characters came into the audience, even talking to the children. We were asked to sing along and join in with some actions. There wasn’t time for any of them to get bored.

All the music and sound effects throughout the show was created live on stage using a viola, radio microphone and a repeat pedal. There was no pre-recorded effects or music tracks at all. It was very clever and Rachel Benson, the viola player was extremely talented.

The show had a very small cast, of three people actually. The Snail, the whale and the narrator who also played the viola. There was also only one set, but with clever lighting and music, we were easily transformed to distant lands and seas.

There was plenty of laughs from my children’s seats, all three of them thoroughly enjoyed the show! We can’t wait to visit The Lowry again soon. There’s lots of this summer for the whole family, check out what’s on here.

Did you know Peppa Pig in coming to The Lowry this August? See here for tickets and don’t forget you can read Out and About Mummy’s review as we saw Peppa Pigs Adventure earlier in the year at The Palace Theatre Manchester.