THE children whose first view of live theatre was watching Little Bulb perform Antarctica at Bristol Old Vic in 2013 are in their late teens now, but possibly are still theatregoers, thanks to that magical experience. Now a new generation is watching a new cast perform the play again, and it is just as enchanting as before, now in the intimate Weston Studio, which opened in 2018.

It’s the perfect setting for this story of adventure and discovery and everyone in the audience is invited to get on board the boat, as intrepid explorer Harriet Hawk heads south to the polar regions in search of the elusive Owlerbear. There is the excitement of the journey, the meeting with parent penguins, hilariously honking seals, birds, fishes and then an appearance by the magical owl-headed and winged polar bear, dancing in the cold Antarctic moonlight.

Peta Maurice leads the expedition, with Amy Harris and dancer Deepraj Singh, who joined the cast only three days before the show opened, contributing all those fantastic creatures, in mime, puppetry and lots and lots of snow.

I can’t think of a more magical way to spend 50 minutes than this delightful show, unlockng the child in all of us as we join in with the enraptured younger members of the audience. Antarctica will be performed on various dates and times between now and 10th January.

GP-W

Antarctica photographs by Paul Blakemore