Beverley Puppet Festival
We headed to the Puppet Festival on Saturday and spent a full day enjoying the variety of events on offer, many of them free. It's the second time we've been to this biennial event and it seems to get better each time as more shows are added to the programme. If Sooty and Sweep springs to mind when puppet shows are mentioned then the Beverley Puppet Festival will certainly give you an alternative interpretation. This age-old form of entertainment is definitely not just for kids and is as creative as any other theatre event.
This time we booked tickets for The Ugly Duckling, a beautiful musical adaptation of Hans Christian Anderson's classic tale, performed by Sea Legs Puppet Theatre. Both children loved the show which had some really clever props including a lamentation of elegant soaring swans and a clever puppet theatre farmyard. The festival spreads across Beverley so there's also lots of street theatre and free shows to enjoy. We saw a traditional Punch and Judy (courtesy of the acclaimed Professor Robanti's Punch and Judy World who takes his squabbling husband and wife duo on globe-trotting tours) show with all the non-politically correct dialogue still refreshingly in tact!
Another show that had us all in stitches was Dangerous Dave by Noisy Oyster, a show you've got to witness to appreciate. The Dave in question is a small scantily-clad rag doll who performs some very silly stunts helped by his hapless sidekick, Herbert Lemon. The miniature superhero fought his way out of a paper bag dampened by Herbert having discreetly relieved himself using a clipboard to preserve his modesty - as you can imagine this had the kids screaming in delight especially when he shook the excess over those seated at the edge of the stage. Don't worry, we suspect it was liquid from a concealed water bottle. Dave went on to climb the slippery pole of peril and plunged into a food processor, escaped from a jar of pickled eggs and finally became a human cannon ball. This show is the sort of alternative entertainment you'd get up at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival so to get it for free in Beverley was a real treat.
Added to the festival itself you've got the setting of Beverley, which is one of my favourite places to visit and is arguably one of the loveliest towns in Britain. It's got lovely Medieval and Georgian architecture, a beautiful minster, boutique shopping, a great Saturday and Wednesday market and plenty of nice little cafes to while away the time in. Panizzi is a lively Italian style deli and wine bar on North Bar Within and is well worth a visit day or night. The ice cream factory next door is a good choice if you have children with you. Nearer the minster are a couple of other nice little cafes with outdoor seating at the back. Browns department store opened earlier this year which was a bit of a coup for the town and will surely pull in more visitors. All in all this place gets a big thumbs up from me whatever the time of year.
And here is the man himself - Dangerous Dave with his sidekick Herbert Lemon.
Please leave a comment if there is anything else going on that you would like me to include.
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