Take Flight is the new show from Rebel Sparks, a touring multi-sensory aerial theatre show for babies (0-2 years) and their families.
Where: Venues across England including Nottingham, Sunderland, Manchester, and finishing in London (Half Moon Theatre, 5-6 Jun).
When: 9 May to 6 Jun.
Take Flight is the opening show at Leicester Children’s Spark Festival from Saturday 16-24 May.
The nine-day festival will transform schools, libraries, community spaces and venues across the city into a vibrant celebration of the arts for young people aged 0-13 with a packed programme of performances, workshops and hands-on experiences.
Ria Ashcroft and Hannah Stone tell us more about the show.
I love the idea of an aerial show for babies with the story of a mother and baby bird! Can you say something about how Take Flight came about?
I was getting back to aerial circus training after having my daughter.
She would be lying on the floor whilst we were all climbing and making shapes above her.
She was mesmerised by all the shadows and shapes on the ceiling. It was like a giant mobile of humans dancing in the air for her.
I thought that it was really special and that I wanted to make an aerial theatre baby show to be able to share this with more little people and their grown ups.
The show is doing a two-month tour from May to July. Has it been challenging to adapt the show to lots of different spaces – how does it work in practice?
We have our own rig that we are touring with the show as we wanted to be able to take the show to lots of venues and places where rigging in the theatre space wasn’t an option.
We have designed the show to be the same in every venue.
I absolutely loved Aidy the Awesome a few years ago. How has Rebel Sparks evolved since that production?
We’ve changed our name from The Gramophones to Rebel Sparks. We’ve (Ria and Hannah) both had more children. We’ve had to adapt our ways of working to be able to evolve with our life.
Why do you think programming theatre for children, and venues devoted to that work, is so important?
Being able to spark the imagination of children through theatre is so important for inspiring and growing creativity and wonder in young minds and our next generation of makers, problem solvers, dreamers and artists.
The theatre is a space where you can share different worlds, explore different opinions and ideas and be taken on a journey which can resonate and connect deeply with audiences.
I know you were previously the Gramophones – why the name change and what does it represent?
We were at a point where we’d out grown our previous name The Gramophones. We have developed as humans, artist and embarked on a new chapter of our lives as mothers. We wanted a name that felt more like who we are now.
We came up with Rebel Sparks as we felt that Rebel Sparks sums up the kind of work we make. Theatre that lights up our audiences, fans the flames of change and sparks connection.
Making shows that burn the rulebook by centering female and non-binary characters and setting fire to audience expectations.
Our work is ambitious – made for, by and with communities. We support everyone to join the campfire by breaking down barriers, giving a loudhailer to unheard voices and making the world a little bit brighter.
And what’s next for the show and the company following this tour?
We’ve got some exciting new projects in the pipeline! And of course we’ll be putting on our super mum capes and having some summer holiday fun with our young families!