It's Hullabaloo time!
It’s that time of the year again…… HULLABALOO! Offaly’s Children’s Arts Festival returns for another four full days of super-extra-massive-bonkers fun for you and your family during October half-term school holidays.
Now, in its 12th year, Hullabaloo! is the county’s only dedicated arts festival for children under 12 years and runs from Wednesday, October 31 - to Saturday, November 3 in Birr, Clara, Edenderry and selected Offaly Libraries (Birr, Clara, Edenderry and Tullamore).
The mega packed 2018 programme of workshops and live performances for children and their families is brimming over with rollicking good laughs to creative making, from inspirational and inclusive storytelling to the offbeat and avant-garde, and the best from local and UK arts and theatre practitioners.
This year we have a plethora of new workshops for you to engage with, learn new skills and have lots of fun: 3D wire sculpture; circus skills; stories and music composition; haunted houses, funky frogs, magical forests, animal art, germ painting and balloon buddies arts and crafts, as well as dance; drumming; clowning; stop motion animation; puppetry; the science of bubbles and the moody skies of Vincent Van Gogh.
There is so much entertainment for the whole family with live theatre performances from One Man Shoe by Jango Starr - a unique style of silent physical theatre including contemporary circus clowning, slapstick comedy, puppetry, juggling and absurd magic. Ceol Connected present ‘A Winter Wish’, an immersive, multi-sensory performance inclusive to children with special educational needs with a mesmerising music performance with traditional musicians Thomas Johnston and Stephen Markham, and visual artist Orla Kelly. Punch Lion bring you Comedy Improv Stories for kids and take you on a nonsense, fun, gobbledygook journey using your suggestions and their comedy improv skills.
Taking Flight Theatre present 'You’re Got Dragons', a performance based on Kathryn Cave’s book of the same name about a young girl with a bad case of the dragons - a story told in a beautifully inclusive way with Irish sign language. Selected Libraries across the county in Birr, Clara, Edenderry and Tullamore have a programme of
Halloween parties, Hullabaloo! films, storytime, drop-in arts and crafts, creative writing and dress up as your favourite book character.
In Clara on Halloween Night from 6.30pm-8pm, The Scare in The Square, Kids Halloween Party is back with another spooktacular event. All are invited to get their monster, scary witch or pumpkin costume on and join the fun as Disney characters, ghostbusters, baby shark dance along, singers, dancers, DJs take over the Green Field near the Town Square with a bumper-packed Halloween Party.
Visit www.hullabaloofestival.ie for further information and to book events. Booking is essential and the Box Office will be open from 1pm October 12th. You can also follow us on Facebook Hullabaloo Children’s Arts Festival.