Breaking cultural boundaries is the theme of the Arts Council of Wales’ annual conference – and one of the ways is by introducing babies to theatre. Karen Price speaks to the woman who’s reaching out to very young audiencesFOR the last 12 months, Sarah Argent has been travelling throughout Europe exploring the best ways of making theatre accessible to children. And it seems that young audiences are now spoilt for choice. When I was growing up, while we had the usual fare – pantomimes, school visits from theatre-in-education companies – there didn’t seem to be much else. But today a wide selection of work is being staged for young theatre-goers – and much of it is being made by Wales’ producing houses, like Cardiff-based Sherman Cymru and the Torch Theatre in Milford Haven. Most of the productions are aimed at children aged three and above, however, Argent believes that you can never be too young to experience theatre. Next week she will tell delegates at the Arts Council of Wales’ annual conference in Aberystwyth that performances should be introduced for those aged from just six months old. Argent already has a strong reputation as a director of theatre for young people and specialises in work for the under-fives. But having received funding through an ACW Creative Wales Award in 2007, she has spent much of her time since then researching how she can implement theatre for babies. “During the last 10 to 15 years, people have been creating work for three to five-year-olds but if theatre is enjoyed by a three-year-old what about younger children?” says Argent, who grew up in Scotland but now lives in Cardiff. Argent travelled to Bologna in Italy and to Germany where she witnessed the work of theatre companies who are reaching out to babies. ............. <A HREF="http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/2008/06/06/baby-shows-are-not-child-s-play-91466-21030588/">FOR THE FULL ARTICLE FOLLOW THIS LINK </a> |
| Western Mail web site: icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/2008/06/06/baby-shows-are-not-child-s-play-91466-21030588/ |
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Friday, June 6, 2008 |
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