A cabaret show for kids and the return of hip hop dance show Pied Piper will run over the Christmas period at the Barbican this year.
Cabaret Simon comes to the Pit from 16 to 31 December with a variety show specially created for children aged four to 10. This intriguing and surprising show brings together a remarkable band of entertainers, hosted by the irrepressible Simon.
Cabaret Simon is created by Stuart Silver and Guy Dartnell along with contemporary performance artists Lone Twin, whose work has been seen at venues around the world including the Melbourne International Festival. Previous site-specific pieces Spiral and Speeches were presented at the Barbican in 2007 and 2008.
Meanwhile older children (10+) and their families can be entertained by Boy Blue Entertainment’s Pied Piper, which plays in the Barbican theatre from 10 December to 3 January. Inspired by Robert Browning’s poem The Pied Piper Of Hamelin, the show is an innovative fusion of street dance and narrative. The action takes place in an unnamed modern urban setting, where the rats in the original poem are youths in black hoodies and Clown Governors rule the city. Taking an edgy look at morality, the show explores the recurring tabloid calls to rid the streets of vermin.
Choreographed by Kenrick ‘H20’ Sandy and directed and designed by ULTZ, Pied Piper began life at Theatre Royal Stratford East and won the 2007 Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre. It returns to the Barbican following a short run in March this year.
Boy Blue Entertainment is one of London’s largest and most innovative street dance troupes whose work aims to reflect the diversity of East London. The company has provided access to dance training for more than 500 young people since it was formed in 2001.
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