The Snail and the Whale
Autumn 2013. UK and Dubai. Ages 4-9
About
‘An inventive and charming adaptation’ The List
Tall Stories (creators of the Gruffalo and Room on the Broom stage shows) are proud to present their latest exciting collaboration with Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler.
A tiny snail longs to see the world, so she hitches a lift on the tail of a humpback whale. But when the whale gets beached, how will the snail save him? Follow the tiny snail’s amazing journey, as seen through the eyes of an adventurous young girl and her seafaring father…
Storytelling, live music and lots of laughs, in a show for everyone aged 4 and up.
‘Expect to leave the theatre happy and smiling’ Fest Magazine
Where is it playing?
Note: tour schedule months are in reverse order.
XMAS 2013
10th December 2013 – 5th January 2014 St James’s Theatre, London
25th November to 8th December Norwich Playhouse
AUTUMN 2013
November 2013
22 & 23 The Key Theatre, Peterborough
20 & 21 Camberley Theatre, Camberley
8 & 9 Forum 28, Cumbria
1-3 Lowry Quays, Salford
October 2013
29-31 Lowry Quays, Salford
26 & 27 Loughborough Town Hall, Loughborough
23-25 Liverpool Playhouse, Liverpool
18 & 19 Lochgelly Centre, Fife
16 & 17 macrobert, Stirling
5-14 The Madinat Theatre, Dubai
1 & 2 The Capitol, Horsham
September 2013
28 & 29 Millfield Theatre, Edmonton
24 & 25 Pomegranate Theatre, Chesterfield
21 & 22 Gulbenkian Theatre, Canterbury
19 & 20 Chelmsford Civic Theatre, Chelmsford
15 & 16 Tobacco Factory, Bristol
11-14 Rose Theatre Kingston, London
7 & 8 Jacksons Lane, London
Previous Tour Dates
2012 UK, Poland, Singapore, Hong Kong
Click here or on the map to see where The Snail and the Whale performed in the UK in autumn 2012.
XMAS 2012
12-30 Exeter Northcott book here
November 2012
1 South Street, Reading book here
2 The Point, Eastleigh book here
3 Park and Dare, Treorchy book here
4 Aberystwyth Arts Centre book here
7-8 Redbridge, South Woodford book here
10 The Castle, Wellingborough book here
11 Radlett Centre book here
17 Stratford Circus, London book here
18 Sundial, Cirencester book here
22 The Maltings, Berwick Upon Tweed book here
24 Catterick Garrison
25 Tobacco Factory, Bristol book here
October 2012
3-7 DBS, Arts Centre, Singapore book here
10-14 Drama Theatre, Hong Kong book here
20 DEDA, Derby book here
24-25 Leicester Curve book here
28 MAC, Birmingham book here
29-30 Brewhouse, Taunton book here
September 2012
23 Jacksons Lane, Highgate book here
August 2012
1-25 Pleasance Edinburgh Fringe
July 2012
1 Quarterhouse, Folkestone book here
7 Norwich Arts Centre book here
8 Swindon Arts Centre book here
14 The Hawth, Crawley book here
15 The Pavilion, Brighton book here
21 Richard Burton Theatre, Cardiff book here
22 Salisbury Arts Centre book here
26 The Mill, Banbury book here
28 The Mart, Skipton book here
29 Carriageworks theatre, Leeds book here
June 2012
3 Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl book here
4 Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan book here
6 Blackwood Miners Institute book here
7 Solihull Arts Complex book here
8 Neuadd Dwyfor, Gwynedd
Box Office: 01758 704 088
9 Borough Theatre, Abergavenny book here
10 The Lyric Theatre, Carmarthenshire book here
12 Taliesin Arts Centre, Swansea book here
17 The Welfare Theatre, Ystradgynlais: Box Office: 01693 843 163
20 Burnley Mechanics Theatre: Box Office: 01282664400
24 Barnsley Civic Theatre book here
26 Sheffield Cathedral book here
30 Ripley Castle, Yorkshire book here
May 2012
5 Hertford Theatre book here
6 Jacksons Lane, London book here
9 Tidworth Barracks
12 Nuffield Theatre, Southampton book here
13 Hawthorne Theatre, Welwyn Garden City book here
17 Rich Mix, East London
19 The Gwyn Hall, West Glamorgan book here
20 Lancaster Grand book here
22-25 The Rose, Kingston book here
26 Lincoln Performing Arts Centre book here
27 Buxton Opera House book here
30 Salisbury Playhouse book here
April 2012
9 Century Theatre, Coalville book here
10 The Grove, Dunstable book here
13 South Holland Centre, Spalding book here
14 Lyric Hammersmith, London book here
15 The Albany, London book here
21 The Met, Bury book here
22 Stantonbury Campus Theatre book here
25-27 English Theatre Company, Warsaw
29 Cornerstone, Oxfordshire book here
EASTER 2012
26 Mar to 7 Apr The Arc, Stockton book here
March 2012
3 Stamford Arts Centre book here
4 The Junction, Cambridge book here
10 The Theatre, Chipping Norton book here
11 The Pleasance, Edinburgh book here
12 Carnegie Hall, Dunfermline book here
13 Eastwood Park Theatre, Lanarkshire book here
14 Rutherglen Town Hall (Box Office: 0141 613 5700)
18 Merlin Theatre, Frome book here
19-20 Henley Youth Festival
21 Bacon Theatre, Cheltenham book here
22-23 Canada Water Culture Space, London book here
25 The Wave Centre, Maryport book here
February 2012
16-19 Artsdepot, Noth London book here
24-25 Compass Theatre, Ickenham book here
Team
Adapted by the company from the picture book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler
Whale/Dad
Martyn Dempsey (original production), Patrick Bridgman
Narrator/Viola
Ellie Moore (original production), Eva Tausig
Snail/Daughter
Rhiannon Wallace (original production), Susanna Jennings
Director
Toby Mitchell
Creative producer
Olivia Jacobs
Designer
Isla Shaw
Lighting designer
James Whiteside
Composer
Richard Heacock
Stage manager
Kaley Freeman (original tour), Charlie Young
Set construction
Footprint Scenery
Special thanks
Reviews
An inventive and charming adaptation.
The List
Captivating, inventive storytelling along with beautiful live music and songs.
Hairline
Expect to leave the theatre happy and smiling.
Fest Magazine
Adventures abound in this touching adaptation.
TheArtsJournal.co.uk
The company did a wonderful job with the story.
One4Review.com
Poetic and musical: a humongous, imaginative adventure for everyone.
FringeBiscuit
Charming and well-produced.
Fringe Guru
An enthralling presentation of Donaldson’s story.
EdinburghGuide.com
Accompanied by some wonderful violin pieces and sound effects, the script stays just close enough to the original to keep the young audience happy while interpreting the story in a fresh and amusing way.
Primary Times
An exquisite piece of theatre with plenty of lyricism… It’s definitely a show that leaves you smiling.
The Stage
The show is interactive, moving at times, fun and, judging by me and my children, captivating… True to the beautiful illustrations of the book, and the rhyming text, the 50-minute long show is fantastic.
Stockton Evening Gazette
A fantastic production – it was great to see the book brought to life on stage.
Woodburn Primary School
Thank you for a wonderful show!
Sonning Common Primary School
Technical
Download basic tech spec
Download lighting notes
Download LX plan for large venues
Download LX plan for smaller studios
Publicity
Click here to download the press release.
Click here to download the marketing pack.
Tall Stories logo
Please use the Tall Stories logo on your publicity wherever possible.
Click here to download our logo as a GIF
Click here to download our logo as an EPS
High resolution images
Click on a thumbnail below for the full size image.
Please credit the images as ‘Copyright Axel Scheffler’ and the photos as ‘Copyright Tall Stories’.
Current cast
Original cast
