This term, we had the joy of visiting four primary schools in Cambridge, delivering fun-filled creative workshops to hundreds of excited Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 pupils. Each visit brought us closer to realising our goal that every primary-aged child in Cambridge should have the opportunity to experience live theatre before they reach secondary school.

Designed alongside the curriculum, our in-school workshops intersperse creative and critical thinking activities, with practical performance techniques, encouraging students to work together, on their feet, to tell a story of their imagining. Students learn skills that can have a lasting resonance in the classroom, and in their capacity for creative expression. We were delighted to have the brilliant Tessa Chalmers from Jam Jar Theatre Company, leading each session, drawing on her amazing experience of touring with puppets across the UK and Europe.

This term’s programme used puppetry as a gateway into fairytales and folklore. Students explored characters through movement and improvisation, experimented with voice and physicality, and discovered how theatre can transform stories from words on a page into something vivid and alive.

Students had a go controlling their own Bunraku puppets – traditional Japanese puppets formed in the early 17th century – the very same puppets that inspired Greg Doran's celebrated production of Venus and Adonis that came to our stage this week!

Students from King's Hedges Educational Federation said to us:

The children's smiling faces and excitable giggles truly said everything. From wide eyes to open mouths to busy puppeteering hands, watching children engage with live theatre for the very first time is one of those moments that reminds us why the arts matter.

Alongside the workshops, we also offered 30-minute Q&A sessions for Year 5s and 6s, giving students the opportunity to sit down with a professional and ask questions about what a career in the performing arts can look like. There were so many fantastic questions, with students asking about the life of an actor, the training and studying involved, how lighting and sound work behind the scenes, and so much more!

One teacher from Arbury Primary School commented:

Students were overjoyed to be on their feet embodying words and improvising, saying:

We are so grateful to all the schools for having us and look forward to coming back again soon. If you are interested in future in-school Creative Learning and Engagement opportunities, please get in contact with Anna at [email protected]