'Birdie's Adventures in the Animal Kingdom' R&D

Following 5-star reviews and sold-out performances of Patch Plays' first show Meat Cute, as well as another successful Scratch Night at the Greenhouse Theatre this summer, we are now coming back with a magical wintertime family musical!

Birdie's Adventures in the Animal Kingdom by Grace Joy Howarth aims to inspire, entertain and educate the next generation about how they can help our planet.

The R&D sharing will take place at Polka theatre (London's leading children's theatre) in January 2022.

Our Show 

The Animal Kingdom is in chaos: the sea levels are rising, the trees are being cut down and the icebergs are melting! Humans seem to do a much better job at destroying the environment than protecting it, but when ten-year-old Birdie meets the animals, it is up to her to be a voice for the voiceless and help save their Kingdom. Birdie's Adventures in the Animal Kingdom is a fun and engaging musical with an important message. 

The play follows Birdie as she travels through the Animal Kingdom, inspired by her late mother and guided by Robin, a messenger sent by the animals who are in search of a new guardian and protector. The show examines how this little girl can have any impact at all in the face of the global issues we face today, which will sadly affect children’s lives more than any other previous generation. We aim to inspire children to engage with their natural environment, bolstering their imaginations and empathy through this fun adventure show.

Our goal for the Research and Development period is to leave with an idea for a fuller realisation of the show in 2022. It will enable us as to workshop the material with young audiences, engaging them with theatre and the environment and making sure the play speaks to the age range that it is aimed at. It will also give us the space to creatively explore the best ways of telling this story and it will enable us to showcase our work to key industry members in the field during a sharing at Polka theatre in January 2022.

R and D aims:

Workshopping scenes and songs with the writer, cast, director and musical director;

Collaborative exploration of staging possibilities;

Delivering relevant workshops to children;

Showcasing script extracts and songs to industry professionals.

Where will your money go?

Your help will crucially enable us to pay for rehearsal space and creatives' costs during our rehearsal period and community workshops of 5-10 days and will also crucially strengthen our funding application for Arts Council England funding. As a new company, we are passionate about continuing to create new work and support artists' and writers' growth, and your help will enable this. 

Creatives 

Writer: Grace Joy Howarth 

Director: Anastasia Bunce 

Producers: Maria Majewska, Grace Tarr and Jake Curran-Pipe

Musical Director and Cast: To be confirmed. 

Reviews of previous work

'The work that Patch Plays are doing is important and I will be sure to look out for their work in the future. I implore that you do so to.' (West End Best Friend, 5 stars).

'Changing the world is an exhausting business, Patch Plays, I salute you!' (View from the Outside, 4 stars)

'Theatre is a medium, where done well, is supposed to make you think, change opinions/possibly change your way of life and I've got to be honest, after watching 'Meat Cute' I'm considering going vegan.' (Theatre and Other Things London, 5 stars)

'Patch Plays and Bibi Lucille deserved the huge round of applause that was given by the audience. This is an excellent play, well written, directed, and performed and if the standard remains this high, they are sure to continue to grow as a theatre company.' (North West End, 5 stars)

About us

Patch Plays, founded in London in August 2020 by Anastasia Bunce and Maria Majewska, is a company devoted to exploring the role of theatre in addressing issues surrounding environmental sustainability, animal ethics, and their intricate connection. We focus on telling personal and entertaining stories to engage audiences with these themes. Our main goal is to create space for audiences to reflect on their place in our neglected, divided, and complicated world. We aspire to challenge and provoke empathy, but also provide reassurance and inspiration for a better future ahead.