Kid’s Sculpture Adventure: Captain Dada Finds His Form

(Historic Houses Trust of NSW, Festival of Sydney 1999)

With the Historic Houses Trust of NSW and the Festival of Sydney, we created an adventure for young people that involved music, puppetry, and a journey through contemporary art: learning and having fun at the same time.  (co-written by Lisa McNichol and Jillian Webster, co-designed by Lenny Pelling and Jillian Webster, music by Tim Banks)

THE STORY

Captain Dada, a superhero-in-training enlists the help of earth children to solve a mystery.  They journey to the planet ‘Sculpturon’ where the curator is in great distress.  Something is upsetting all the sculptures!  Everyone explores the planet, meeting sculptures and finding clues.  It seems that a rather old-fashioned statue has been frightening everyone- he has been feeling left out as visitors to the planet seem only to admire the new artwork, and not traditional sculptures like him.  Captain Dada and the children use their newfound vocabulary to compliment him - his shape, texture, etc, and make him feel so much better.  He promises to be good, everyone sings, and the children return to earth, their mission complete.

EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES

We hoped that by the end of the performance, children would be able to use and understand words and concepts that describe art (and especially sculpture).  We talked about shape/form, line, colour, and texture, about contrast and mood.  Near the end of the show, children were encouraged to help an old-fashioned sculpture (actor and puppet combined) to feel better about himself by using this language to pay him compliments.

After having had this experience, children felt comfortable in the contemporary sculpture exhibition area and viewed it as an environment of fun and adventure, one they could understand and explore, rather than an exclusive and boring ‘don’t-touch’ exhibition for adults.

SOME IMAGES FROM THE SHOW

(photography by Ross Heathcote, costume and puppet design by Jillian Webster and Lenny Pelling)

Ms Voila Croissant, Curator  Ms Voila Croissant, the excitable and enthusiastic Curator of the Planet Sculpturon, encourages children to touch one of her favourite sculptures, waxing lyrical on the subject of shape and texture before teaching everyone the Sculpturon Planetary Anthem (complete with sculpture-inspired actions naturellemont darlings!)

Captain Dada talks to Bubba  Wannabe super-hero Captain Dada talks to the sculpture Bubba (a sandstone-textured, rounded form that suggests ancient ‘earth mother’ sculptures) to find out what’s been going wrong in Sculpturon.  Fortunately Captain Dada is fluent in Kazoo, Bubba's native tongue.

Captain Dada helps Vera

Captain Dada finds a sculpture in distress.  Vera has been frightened by a mysterious sculpture and has fallen over.  Lacking the means to get up by herself, she has lain there for some time and needs helping up and cheering up…

Which is of course what happens! (thanks to an eternally surprising range of jokes from the children in the audience)

For pictures from our other productions and commissions, please have a look through our Gallery pages.