Visual Story for the Relaxed Performance of Thursday 22 nd February 2018 at 12.30pm This Visual Story is designed for visitors to the Relaxed Performance of The Little Matchgirl and Other Happier Tales. This guide should help prepare you for your visit, understand what to expect during the performance and to find your way around the Theatre Royal Plymouth.
General Information about the Theatre Royal Plymouth This is what the Theatre Royal Plymouth looks like from the outside. You will come into the foyer (inside area) through the sliding doors. The foyer can get busy before the show. There are places where you can sit down and have some lunch if you arrive early. The Box Office looks like this. If you need to collect your tickets when you arrive, please queue here and someone will help you.
Food, drink and toilets There is a café and bars where you can buy food and drink before The Little Matchgirl and Other Happier Tales starts and during the interval. If you would like to bring a packed lunch then you can sit down and eat it here too. There are toilets on every floor of the theatre, including accessible toilets suitable for wheelchair users. The accessible toilet on the second floor requires a radar key, please contact a member of staff if you need it.
Theatre Royal Plymouth staff When you arrive at the theatre there will be ushers who will answer any of your questions, help you find your way around and show you where to go to find your seats. The Theatre Royal Plymouth staff are always happy to help and answer any questions. They wear a uniform which looks like this: You can also ask questions to anyone wearing a Theatre Royal Plymouth lanyard around their neck.
The Auditorium The auditorium is the part of the theatre where the audience will sit while they watch The Little Matchgirl and Other Happier Tales The door number that you need to go to find your seats is printed on your ticket. This is your door number This is the row your seat is in and your seat number Here is a seat map of The Lyric auditorium which will help you find your seats.
The Lyric auditorium looks like this You will have time before the performance starts to find your seats and get comfortable. During the performance The main lights in the auditorium will stay on. There will not be any loud bangs. You can talk and don t have to be quiet. If you would like to have a break and leave the auditorium, there will be a chill out zone on the ground floor where you can sit and relax. How long does The Little Matchgirl and Other Happier Tales last? The Little Matchgirl and Other Happier Tales will start at 12.30pm and last for around 2 hours including a 20 minute break. The interval is a break in the middle of the show when most people leave their seats, get a drink or use the toilet. After the break, everyone will come back and sit down in their seats again. Then the actors will come back on the stage and finish telling the story of The Little Matchgirl and Other Happier Tales.
About The Little Matchgirl and Other Happier Tales The little Matchgirl is homeless and lives in the street. She sells matches for money. But sometimes she lights a match to stay warm. Her friend, the storyteller Ole Shuteye, begins to tell a story every time she lights a match. His group of performers, The Shuteyes, help him tell the story.
The first story is about a girl called Thumbelina. She s very small. Her mother finds her in a bag, and looks after her. But her mother is killed in a war, and so Thumbelina is on her own. She sets out to look for a new home. Thumbelina finds her way to a big camp for other people made homeless by the war. She meets Ralph, a frog, and his father. They offer her a home, if Thumbelina marries Ralph. But Thumbelina doesn t want to, so she runs away. She escapes by floating down a river on a glass bottle.
Thumbelina finds a city, guarded by beetles. They won t let her in. So she travels on again, and finds a home with Mrs Fieldmouse and Mr Mole. Mr Mole wants to marry Thumbelina, but is very cruel to her. Then an injured swallow falls in to her home, and she helps him get better. They run away together. The next story Ole Shuteye tells is The Emperor s New Clothes. A very spoilt Emperor loves to wear new clothes all of the time, and shops all day long.
On Parade day, the two designers run away before the Emperor shows off his new clothes. The Emperor arrives for the parade, thinking that he s wearing an outfit so magical that it is invisible. He s not wearing any clothes. The little Matchgirl laughs at the Emperor, and wears his crown as he runs away embarrassed.
The last story that Ole Shuteye tells the Little Matchgirl is The Princess and the Pea. A very lonely Prince is looking for his Princess. A Princess comes to the castle, and the Prince falls in love with her. The Prince wants to test her, so he puts a single pea under her mattress and then piles lots of mattresses on to the bed. If she can feel the pea, she must be a real Princess. But when the Princess finds out, she is angry at the Prince for testing her and leaves him.
Ole Shuteye has finished telling the stories, and there are only a few matches left. But the Little Matchgirl wants Ole Shuteye to tell one more story. She wants him to tell her story. It is Christmas time in London, and the Little Matchgirl is homeless. It is snowing, and she is very hungry. Without any help, the Little Matchgirl dies. But Ole Shuteye is a homeless man too, and he finds help when a charity offers him food and somewhere to stay. If you feel scared you can cover your eyes with your eye mask or leave the auditorium. If the sound is too loud during The Little Matchgirl and Other Happier Tales you can cover your ears or wear headphones. After each song, some people will clap. Clapping makes the actors happy because it means people liked their song. If you want to clap then you can. You don t have to clap if you don t want to. At the end of the show, all of the actors will come out on stage and bow. This is called a curtain call. Many people will clap a lot so the actors know how much they liked the show. After the show is over, everyone will leave the theatre. We hope you enjoy the show and look forward to seeing you again soon!