According to Arthur...
According to Arthur... underwent a unquie creation process. This innovative theatre project followed the tale of Arthur, an ordinary old man who writes extraordinary stories - with a little help from his old friend the moon and children at White Rock Primary School.
Through storytelling, puppetry and music, PaddleBoat Theatre Company present the tale of the Arthur and his stories for you to share in - because Arthur can't write his stories alone, and everyone has their own story to tell...
Development Process (Worlds Within Words)
Developing the show...
PaddleBoat experimented with a unique development process for According to Arthur...
Through a creative Residency at White Rock Primary School, PaddleBoat explored and developed Arthur's tale. We delivered weekly workshops with selected groups of children to explore character and narrative, to create exciting and imaginative stories from all over the world, and to develop the vibrant different ways in which we can share our stories. The children's vision fed directly into PaddleBoat's rehearsals and therefore the piece itself, affecting the outcome of Arthur's story.
'Through questions and play, the children really enabled us to shape Arthur as a character opening up new narrative avenues to explore' - Katy Dash (Artistic Director)
Some of the questions children asked:
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Why do you live alone?
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Is there anything about your life you regret?
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Did you have a job?
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What's the best story you've written?
'The workshops were brilliant thank you, the children really enjoyed them!' Year 5 Teacher
In Theatres:
Scratch performances
PaddleBoat have been very fortunate to have taken part in two Scratch Performance Nights, trialing ten minutes of According to Arthur... in front of audiences. It has been exciting and endlessly helpful to share our work in progress with our peers, industry professionals, and theatre-goers in general, and to hear their responses to Arthur and his stories.
Our thanks to audiences at Prototype at Tobacco Factory Theatres and at Practice at Salisbury Arts Centre. We had such a wonderful experience at each event and look forward to returning with new ideas next time.
This project has been supported by Arts Council England and White Rock Primary School
 White Rock Primary School |  Sensory description |
|---|---|
 Creative writing- free writing.jpg |  c7c564ae35994eb59b5d9fd351b73f76_1x1.jpeg |
 Arthur visited thier Brazil.jpeg |  11025138_945130378864433_7889405428672352945_n.jpg |
 8991_908829155827889_359616684256026520_n.jpg |  5ad9a26b59014ae08a61c0ea78ea2803_1x1.jpeg |
 What is culture? |  whats fun to mime? |
 Myths and Legends |  sharing stories |
 multiple use of objects |  learnt how to move bag puppets |
 landmarks |  Puppets |
 Explorers |  Landmarks |
 Landmarks |  Freezeframe |
 Narration |  Story sharing |
 soundscapes |
In Libraries:
According to Arthur...
According to Arthur... was programmed by Doorstep Arts as part of BAC's collaborative touring network. The show toured Torbay Libraries and Community Centre with accompanying storytelling workshops for families over the Easter holidays, 2015.
PaddleBoat fell in love with libaries as performance spaces and the setting magically enhanced the show.
We had some brilliant feedback:
"I enjoyed it when I joined in" Ben aged 6
“Very inventive. A creative storytelling. As a teacher, I could see how this could be an excellent springboard to further work in story writing, geography, sounds and emotional aspects also. Fantastic piece of theatre” - Audience Member
"A fabulous opportunity to suspend belief and join Arthur on his exciting travels. Thank you so much" - Jade’s Grandma (Audience Member)
We were also lucky enough to meet Lyn Gardner who gave us feedback for the show to develop it for the Brighton Fringe where we received a 4 star review, before we head to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this August.
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