creating possibilities for disabled children creating possibilities for disabled childrenThe Backyard: The Wildings
“The Wildings has been created for autistic children & young people. It is a beautifully inclusive natural space, where the whole family can relax, explore and express themselves in an environment that is playful, and free from judgement or expectation.” – Dawn Bowden, Bamboozle Artist
The Wildings is as experience which we developed at The Bamboozle Backyard – a wildlife plot on an allotment site in Leicester. It is an oasis of calm and creativity waiting to be explored and brought to life during The Wildings sessions. The Wildings are sessions led by Bamboozle artists where the family can escape the busyness and stresses of modern life and take a breath.
“Instant relaxation! Anxiety ebbs away rapidly. The magic of the location, and the wonderful people involved are a magical combination. Like walking into a daydream!” Vicky Davies, parent.
During these sessions, you and your child will be encouraged to relax and recharge alongside the artists, who will skilfully provide a safe and engaging space to explore the natural elements within the site.
Each session will be organic in the way it develops and will be age-appropriate and child-led. The artists will pretend to be quirky characters with whom the children can choose to engage with, and explore ideas and activities. They can make potions, float stones or make mud soup!
The children can, if they choose to, follow their own ideas within a playful, fun environment.
This experience has recently been adapted for Festival settings and Forest School environments. If you’d like to enquire about bringing The Wildings to your outdoor space, please email info@bamboozletheatre.co.uk.
We continue to run FREE Wildings sessions for families at our Bamboozle Backyard in Leicester during certain school holidays.
Would you like to get a postcard from the Backyard?
During the Winter months when we aren’t able to run our Backyard sessions in person, we’re sending a bit of Backyard to your home!
>> Join our Hibernation Series activities here.
Thank you to our funders!
The Might Creatives’ Creative Community Fund
Originally created with investment from The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust
Re-Wilding Characters you might meet
Aurora Sue Mac George Little Wing
Aurora Dawn Tayosong Grace
The audience gathers. The music swells. The mist swirls. Anticipation. Then arriving in the playground the full-grown Firebird. Its five-metre wingspan hovers above the audience, circling, swooping and diving.
Based on the myths and legends of the Phoenix, this spectacular new production promises to bring an unforgettable experience into your school grounds or outdoor space. If you’d like to arrange a visit full of unique Bamboozle puppetry, comic characters and live music – including a chicken jazz band! – please get in touch.
Our Firebird tour has come to an end for 2022, however the show is available for one-off or multiple bookings. Please email info@bamboozletheatre.co.uk for further details.
Watch our Firebird trailer:
Which of my students will the show be suitable for and how many can access it?
Who is it suitable for? This show is devised for a wide range of learning-disabled students, including those sometimes described as SLD, MLD and some students on the autistic spectrum. While it is not specifically designed for those described as PMLD there will be Bamboozle’s customary mix of sensory possibilities, this will be more suitable for PMLD students who respond to sound, as there will be a lot of live and recorded music.
Who is it not suitable for? We will be working within Covid restriction guidance, so will not be able to offer close-up interactions in person. This will limit the possibilities for students described as PMLD who are visually impaired, though, as above, it will suit those who respond to sound. It is not suitable for those on the Autistic Spectrum who need to be able to move around freely nor for those with the sort of challenging behaviour that makes it difficult to guarantee calm observance of boundaries. This is because the actors will need to remain socially distanced from the audience. In addition: The Firebird and other puppets/props cannot be touched in the way Bamboozle shows normally accommodate for both Covid secure reasons and to avoid any unintentional damage.
How many can experience it? The show is designed to play to four class bubbles of any size. The climax of the production takes place outdoors, with all four class bubbles watching at the same time, so there must be a suitable outdoor space, large enough for you to safely distance the class bubbles.
What happens if it rains?
The performance will go ahead unless the Bamboozle team judge the weather to be so severe that it poses a safety risk. Therefore the school will need to ensure pupils have warm clothing, wet weather gear and umbrellas available to cope with the British summer! If you have a covered outdoor area, then we can also work with you to see how we could stage the performance such that the audience can stand under cover if the rains come.
This sounds great, what else do I need to know?
This experience is a unique one and will be different in each school, we will need to work closely with you to plan where and when each part of the action will unfold, please read The Firebird in your School to understand more about how the experience is likely to work across a school day.
More information
Download the Firebird – Companion Pack for Teachers Summer 2022
Join Betty, Doris and Arthur as they explore the textures, smells and tastes of their World War II allotment. You’ll be visited by a mischievous mole and will escape to a magical and relaxing forest, where you’ll encounter bees buzzing around their hives.
Made especially for young audiences described as having profound and multiple learning disabilities, this multi sensory show creates a welcoming and enchanting world with music, puppetry and lots of invitations to take part in immersive interaction.
Bamboozle are delighted to be touring this especially adapted show, which ensures that individual attention is given to every audience member. The production has been carefully designed to fully accommodate social distancing and make sure that all interactive elements are delivered in a Covid-safe way.
“A magical, relaxing experience” Andrea, parent
“A lovely experience to bring us together in such strange times. Safe, inclusive and such a pleasure” Sam, parent
“Ingenious, refreshing, uplifting” Kate, parent
Running time 45-55 mins
Age recommendation: We usually recommend an age range of 6 to 14 years for the show, though it has often been enjoyed by older teenagers and young adults and may be suitable for some younger audience members, we think families are best able to judge this themselves.
Watch this space for the announcement of further dates.
Down to Earth Outdoor – Belgrave Hall – Guide and FAQs
Down to Earth Companion Pack for Teachers and Support Staff
Our Front of House performances are designed to bring a burst of live music and colour to your front door!
Our performances provide a 30-minute set of acoustic and electric songs from a team of three musicians and a technician. The team arrive and set up a festival-themed performance area in either a front of back garden, or on street outside your house.
Front of House performances have been designed to ensure that our team can remain socially distanced from each other and from our audience. In order to for us to set up, we’ll need room to put up a 3m x 3m gazebo, with at least another 3m in front of the gazebo, and a meter either side for speakers.
If weather permits, families can sit outside to enjoy the performance, or remain inside the home to enjoy the music, e.g. this set up is recommended if you and your family are shielding, or if social distancing might present an issue for your children.
We encourage neighbours to listen in from a safe distance, too, whether in their own gardens or from their doorsteps. We will provide flyers that you can put through letterboxes to notify neighbours about our visit in advance.
We are currently resting our Front of House project, and will update this page when the project goes out again.
For any enquiries, please email: jennifer@bamboozletheatre.co.uk.
“A special privilege of having a private concert on our front garden! My daughter laughed and danced and it felt so special to have those memories”. Andrea, parent
“I was humbled by the effort Bamboozle had gone to specifically to entertain my daughter. Our neighbours were thrilled to be invited and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It was really lovely to see and be able to talk to people we hadn’t had any face to face contact with for some considerable time. It brightened up our weekend and lifted our spirits”. Iona, parent
“My daughter absolutely loved the performance, which was truly unique and something she hadn’t experienced before. She loved the fact that the performance was taking place in her garden and so she didn’t have the anxiety she would normally experience going out to a venue to see it. Tess, parent
“Amazing experience, so special just for our family. Unforgettable” Judith, parent
“It was something extremely special for my daughter as she has been shielding. It was a way of keeping her connected to the things she loves through this tricky time. Her visual difficulties mean she struggles to access things via a screen so this was perfect for her”. Joanne, parent
Recommended age range: flexible
Possible triggers: Loud music (volume can be altered as appropriate).
See an example of our flyer for neighbours
Please contact us via info@bamboozletheatre.co.uk and we will respond either via email or with a phone call if that is more suitable.
Unit 10 St Mary's Works | 115 Burnmoor Street | Leicester LE2 7JL | 0116 255 2065
Registered Charity Number: 1136157 | Registered in England and Wales.
Company No. 7193792
