'Fables at the Kitchen Table' - Online Theatrical Storytelling By Sophia Hatfield

Life in lockdown for theatre creatives has been tough. Whilst our Stute Theatre performances and projects are being rescheduled and re-imagined, I’ve been busy working away on some new storytelling videos with Spot On Lancashire and Manchester Libraries.

A huge part of my practice as an artist centres around creative storytelling. I love it. I love taking classic stories and giving them a new theatrical twist. I turn up to school and libraries, using music and song, creating characters from simple costumes and repurposed household props (and usually I collaborate with designers and visual artists to make these inventive shows look amazing). Nothing gives me more joy that seeing a young child’s eyes light up when a bin bag magically becomes a whale, or a violin transforms into a sailing ship. My hope is that the creativity modelled in these shows heads home with each child in the audience.

This type of imaginative theatre is reliant on an active connection with the audience. So… how can you create something theatrical in style that works on film? How can you be sure your young audience is engaged, when they’re not physically in the room with you? Is it possible to do this in lockdown, without funding, a huge rehearsal space and access to a theatre’s prop store?

This has been my mission over the past few weeks. To be honest, I’m not sure I’ve answered these questions but I’ve had a go. I’ve been working on a new idea, creating some new ‘Fables at the Kitchen Table’ for children and families. With some kind support .from Spot On Stories and Manchester Libraries, I’ve made some new, free online videos. These are the first stages of developing a new style of work. I’ll be heading back to the drawing board with our friends at Filament Projects soon, to see where we could take this idea and how we could grow from what we’ve learnt during lockdown.

I would very much like to be in a building, with funding, paying a team of freelance artists, designers, directors and makers to create this work with me. I’m also mindful that this kind of quick-fix digital work will never be a fitting replacement for the beautiful collaborative live children’s theatre that exists in the UK. It doesn’t come close. But I’ve also felt a responsibility to use some of my time in lockdown creatively and approach the limitations forced on us by Covid-19 as an opportunity to explore something new.

The work isn’t perfect. My prop-making skills are basic at best! I don’t have the visual flair of a theatre designer, or the keen eye of a graphic artist or the attention to detail of a theatre director. It’s been a DIY experiment involving a cheap tripod, a mobile phone and whatever I could find lying around the house!

Creating this work has been fun, but challenging. I feel quite sorry for my lovely next door neighbours, who have to listen to my singing and ukulele playing for hours of the day, or overhear my living room lion-roaring workshops! Filming when you live next to a busy road is a painstaking and frustrating process. Working alone in a room at home feels very strange. It requires a new level of discipline I still haven’t quite mastered. But performing in busy libraries isn’t always easy. There are always challenges when you take work into crowded classrooms or bustling community spaces. Stute Theatre aims to treat these challenges as a creative opportunity. We’ve got pretty good at it over the years, and so that’s what I’ve tried to do here.

I’m hopeful that whilst most young children can’t see live performances, my attempt at a new way of working might, at least, bring few smiles.

‘The Merchant, The Donkey and The Salt’, created for Spot On Stories is available now on the Spot On Website and Facebook Page here: Watch ‘The Merchant, The Donkey and The Salt’

‘The Lion and The Mouse’ is available to watch with Manchester Libraries here: A captioned version of the same video is available to watch here: Watch ‘The Lion and the Mouse’

There’s also a captioned version of this video on our YouTube channel. Watch it here: Watch ‘The Lion and the Mouse’ - Captioned

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Check out the two accompanying worksheets below!