2020 Sydney, Wollongong, Blue Mountains & Hunter Valley for Book Week

Feel Brave

Using her Feel Brave series of books, Avril and the students brainstorm what makes a ‘good story’. By dissecting her book The Wolf is NOT Invited students discover how Avril takes her readers on an emotional journey with her use of three key elements:-

Problem and resolution. Surprises. Gifts.

Avril, I have loved using your books and the creative strategies suggested to bring about positive change for the children I work with! All the children have made very positive comments about the books, feelings cards and techniques used to teach them.

Dr Nicole Carvill - THINK Psychologists Australia.

Price: $5.00 per student (No GST).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

Before You Know It You'll Be A Poet

There is no sitting on a stool for this poet; she is on her feet, punctuating poignant points with puppets, props and her own personal panache. She’s out to bridge the gap between nursery rhymes and slam poetry. She even delivers one poor nursery rhyme in a slam poetry style.

What others have said about the writer and producer's other work:

The performer was outstanding. The audience, was extremely interactive and used her talent to really bring poetry alive. Our Grade 3-5 students were all involved with poetry this year and this performance consolidated and built upon lots of work done last year. You could see students making connections. A well worthwhile, thoroughly entertaining, engaging and educational experience.

Lisa Neubecker. Year 5 - 6. St Helens District High School / Primary. TAS. Mar 2019.

Price: $5.50 per student (GST included).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

My Friends and I

With a winning blend of drama, poetry, puppetry and staging, this light hearted, humorous production tackles the problem of bullying head on. Throughout the show students are assured that if they are being bullied it is not their fault and there are things they can do about it.

The performer was engaging, excelled in her performance keeping all children engaged for the entire show. Lots of variation within the performance. Fast moving but also very clear on the message. Provides lots of opportunities for class teachers to follow up on at classroom.

Irene Niebuur. Years 1 - 4. Launceston Christian School. Riverside. TAS. Mar 2019.

Price: $4.95 per student (GST included).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

Then and Now

Then and Now looks at the determination, courage and good humour of Australian women. Using story-telling techniques, visual aids, audience participation and puppets, students are transported back in time to explore the vast differences between the way things were done then, compared to now. The “What am I?” segment has students identifying everyday objects from the past including a screw driver and drill, wash board, wooden pegs, and a pre-electric iron as they explore a time when cleaning clothes was a much bigger task than throwing them into a machine.

Students were able to understand how the First Fleet occurred through the performance. Great examples given and good interaction with the audience. 'Guessing the items' part of the show was great!! Very engaging.

Petrece Raspin. Preps to Year 6. Bowen Road Primary School. Moonah. TAS. Mar 2019.

Price: $5.50 per student (GST included).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

From Halfway Around The World

From Halfway Around The World is a collection of seven stories plus chants, poetry, rhymes and children’s games. There are true stories, a fable, a fairytale, a dreamtime story and by the end of the show when the same tall story is being told for the third time the whole audience is involved.

All stories told with humour and children were attentive throughout. Hugh established a good rapport with the children from the start.

Yvonne Langley. K-6. Cobden Primary School. VIC. May 2018.

Price: $4.95 per student (GST included).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

G'Day Asia

In this engaging introduction to Asia, students are encouraged to get up and participate in both traditional cultural ceremonies and colourful contemporary celebrations.

Depending on whether you are in Bali on Nyepi day, China for New Year or at the Imperial Japanese Court for an audience with the Emperor and Empress, will determine whether you have special clothes to wear, flags to fly, effigies to burn, protocols to observe or huge dragons to manipulate and lots of noise to make.

Students were engaged and entertained throughout. The performer was able to regain attention of audience when they became excited. Valuable learning opportunity. Hugh was personable and positive and enthusiastic about performing (and his performances) - most enjoyable.

Bronwyn Howes. K/Preps to Year 6. Oakville Public School. Oakville. NSW. 4/09/2018.

Price: $5.50 per student (GST included).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

Pick a Peck of Pickled Poems

In Pick a Peck of Pickled Poems the poetry is not just read or recited, it is acted out and brought to life with a variety of character voices, costumes, puppets and props. The seven poems from the late 1800’s are just as funny today as they were when they were first written. Spanning across 130 years these carefully selected poems cover a range of genres, topics and perspectives. With just over twenty poems, an audience participation section, a song and the hilarious humanette puppet finale, this show really moves along.

Brilliant visual start, got the kids hooked and engaged immediately. Students contributed where asked. Very entertaining and lots of action. Concept of poems/ poetry/ rhyme/ rhythm/ alteration/ prose all covered in an entertaining way. Timing was great, not too short, not too long. Able to read audience very well, adjust temper. Hugh was organised, projected voice with props utilised and entertaining, easy for all students to see.

Jill Newcombe. K/Preps to Year 6. Colac Primary School. Colac. VIC. 20/08/2018.

Price: $5.50 per student (GST included).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

Brilliant at Being Resilient

Brilliant at being Resilient uses stories, poetry, fractured fairy tales, illusions and loads of humour to explore the value of resilience and tolerance as well as getting across the message that bullying is not acceptable.

I thought the message that the show brought to the students was wonderful. It was empowering because it gave ideas on how kids can pick up the pieces and bounce back without the help of an adult all the time. Hugh was great! The show was set at a good pace and the students were engaged for the whole time.

Maria Giaquinto. P - Year 6. Lower Tully State School. Lower Tully. QLD. May 2019.

Price: $5.50 per student (GST included).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

Australian Folklore

Using stories, music, a vast array of props and audience participation from start to finish, Gerard Cafe brings Australia’s folklore to life. There is didgeridoo playing, sing-a-longs to some Australian classics and even a chance for students to test their sheep shearing skills. Not with real sheep of course but these stuffed jumbucks prove just as feisty as the real thing.

This show was a great combination of educational and interactive opportunities for the children. Particularly engaging for infants and stage 2. Absolutely loved the sheep shearing – very funny and dressing the swagmen was engaging and great due to the competitive nature of the activity!

Kathy Patterson. K – 6. Forbes Public School. NSW. Jul 2018.

Price: $5.00 per student (No GST).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

We're All Australians Now

We’re All Australians Now explores the questions - How do you build a nation? and What makes a society work? If the goal is to live in harmony with both the land and each other, how do we continue to achieve this goal? In the quest to find answers Gerard goes beyond our politicians and explores the role our nation’s citizens play every day and how their actions, works and deeds; nurture, inspire and keep us safe.

Engaging, enthusiastic, entertaining. Summed up Australia in a concise way with lots of fun songs and ways for students to participate and join in.

Kate Nolan. Mount Barker South Primary School. SA. Mar 2019.

Price: $5.00 per student (No GST).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

Big Tops Circus

Luth is an inspiration as she shows children a very impressive fraction of what the human body is capable of. This performance demonstrates how achieving your best results and realizing your full potential can be both rewarding and heaps of fun.

Luth Wolff can do Magic and I don’t mean just her sleight of hand and neat balancing tricks – I mean, this woman can keep several dozen highly excited pre-schoolers and preps under her spell for nearly an hour. I also admire the subtle didactic elements she works in, explaining abilities, paying the fool to allow the kids to correct her, introducing boundaries and safety rules, and – particularly in a screen–time world - teaching the next generation of live theatre patrons how to be an audience, all in fun and funny ways

Kim Edwards, Theatre Press

Price: $4.95 per student (GST included).

Minimum audience size: 80 students

Stretch, Balance and Spin

Stretch, Balance and Spin is a stunning combination of outstanding skills, hilarious moments and excellent healthy life lessons.

Throughout the show the positive effects of Exercise, Healthy Eating and Mindfulness are delicately and cleverly woven into the comedy and physical theatre in a way that resonates and leaves a lasting impression on the audience.

"Interactive, engaging and educational" - 4 Stars.

The Adelaide Advertiser.

Price: $4.95 per student (GST included).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

A Slice of Vaudeville

The vaudeville format with its emphasis on variety is ideal for children and Alan Sloggett has all the skills and experience to keep his audience enthralled with his comedy, magic, puppets and ventriloquism. Children have always been fascinated by magic but when Alan combines traditional slight of hand magic with electronics, children are truly spellbound by what they see.

Wow! The students were 100% engaged, right from the start until the very end! He put in 110% throughout the whole performance. This performance was better than excellent, absolutely awesome!!!

Yvonne Game. K-6. Traralgon South Primary School. VIC. May 2018.

Price: $4.95 per student ($4.50 + $0.45 GST).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

Heave Ho Off We Go

In these days of pre-recorded, flat screen visual entertainment where everything is possible, Alan challenges his audience, right before their eyes with illusions that get their young brain cells working, trying to work out what actually happened in the seemingly impossible illusions they witness.

All kids were engaged. Absolutely hilarious and a really engaging and enjoyable show. It's hard to keep that many students of varying ages engaged and focussed for a set time so well done. Excellent work. It was fast moving and engaging.

Liz Hanford. P-6. Gordonvale State School. Gordonvale. QLD. Aug 2018.

Price: $5.50 per student ($5.00 + $0.50 GST).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

All Hands On Ukes

Tom Harding’s passion for this amazingly portable instrument is infectious and his ability to involve everybody - teachers included- is incredible. His seemingly effortless ability to make everyone feel at ease and produce music together is something he has been perfecting over many years.

Tom Harding aka ‘Tom the Pom’ was indeed born in the UK and since 1997 has been playing music and conducting workshops in both the UK and Australia. His energetic and supportive teaching style and his charismatic nature has seen him conduct workshops for BBC Television, and numerous festivals including – Glastonbury, Winter Magic and Newcastle Ukulele festivals. As a performer he has played with Samba Ninja at both State of Origin and Bledisloe Cup.

Price: Per Workshop - $390 (No GST).
- OR -
10 Workshops - $3000 (No GST)(1 workshop per week over a term, for the same group of students. Only available in the greater Sydney metropolitan area.)

Absolute Maximum Audience Size: 60 students.

The Samba Experience

Students need no prior musical knowledge, just their natural youthful enthusiasm for Tom Harding to have them skilfully performing the energetic Brazilian rhythms that are the Samba.

Tom Harding has been performing and teaching music since 1997, first in the UK and currently in Australia. His charisma and enthusiastic approach to the Samba brings energy to the workshop that is infectious and immediately has everyone eager to participant. Tom has conducted his workshops around the world at numerous schools and festivals and for corporate clients such as Médecins Sans Frontières and the Cancer Council.

Price: Per Workshop - $390 (No GST).
- OR -
10 Workshops - $3000 (No GST)(1 workshop per week over a term, for the same group of students. Only available in the greater Sydney metropolitan area.)

Absolute Maximum Audience Size: 60 students.

Quest for the Ultimate Rhythm

Join The Bongo Brothers in their multicultural comic musical journey around the world - ‘Quest for the Ultimate Rhythm’. Meet Mongo, music-maestro and his hilarious baby brother Bongo. Putting them together spells a recipe for disaster!

The Bongo Brothers were incredibly entertaining. The mix of music and humour was very engaging for the children. They are talented and completely capable of handling the audience enthusiasm.

Janette King. K-6. Sawtell Public School. Sawtell. NSW. Sep 2018.

Price: $6.60 per student ($6.00 + $0.60 GST).

Minimum audience size: 140 students

Surf Safari

‘MAYDAY! MAYDAY!’ - The world is heating up. Pack your drums, sunscreen and sense of humour and join The Bongo Brothers in the most exciting scientific quest on the planet, Surf Safari.

Entertaining, relevant, musically enriching and educational. Performers were confident and professional.

Petra Taylor-Smith. Year 3 - 6. St Thomas More Primary School. Sunshine Beach. QLD. Sept 2018.

Price: $6.60 per student ($6.00 + $0.60 GST).

Minimum audience size: 140 students

Flute Tones to Saxophones

Concert flute, Alto flute, Piccolo - American Indian, Chinese and Indian flutes, Pan Pipes, Alto, Soprano, Tenor and Baritone Saxophones - Recorders, Ocarinas, Armenian Duduk, Digeridoo, German Fife and an Aerophone (electronic wind instrument) are all shown, explained and played effortlessly by Andrew Oh in this most comprehensive, inspiring exploration of woodwind instruments.

Andrew Oh is an outstanding player at an international level.

Gail Brennan, Sydney Morning Herald

Price: $5.00 per student (No GST).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

Mime-O-Rama

While Dennis Clare often speaks throughout the show, his loveable characters are mainly mute and their world is a world of imagination where the unexpected is the norm. This is a world in which giant, but incredibly mobile slinkies are inhabited by silent, yet sociable characters. The intentions, wants and moods of these gregarious creations are totally understood by the audience and thus their intriguing stories are told. Single eyes, some huge, others small appear and make their opinions known with nothing more than a tilt, sudden move or a long, still stare.

Dennis Clare is a world class mime artist who has performed for P&O and Princess Cruises / Hanan TV China / Sydney Comedy Festival / Melbourne International Comedy Festival / Laugh Garage Melbourne / Australia's Got Talent / Country Arts WA / Q theatre / Art Gallery of NSW / Fox Studios Comedy Club. He has performed in commercials for ING Bank / R&I BANK / Dulux / EDL Fasteners and has delighted audiences in countless theatre venues around Australia and the world.

Price: $5.50 per student (GST included).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

Rubbish - Mic Conway

Cardboard boxes and tubes, paper, plastic gloves, straws, hose pipe, old brooms and garbage bins; Mic Conway is out to prove he can recycle almost any piece of discarded ephemera, by turning it into a musical instrument and playing a recognizable tune on it. Those objects that are not able to be tuned he will turn into fun toys. Meet Jack; he lives in a garbage bin. He’s a chatty little critter who has some informed and useful information for us all as to what we can do to help reduce the waste.

Mic Conway formed the nationally acclaimed Captain Matchbox Whoopee Band with his brother Jim while he was still at school. The band went on to have two gold albums. Mic co-founded the great Circus Oz and has won an ARIA award for his children’s CD “Whoopee”. He was an ABC children's artist and appeared on Playschool, Mr Squiggle, Here’s Humphrey and for many years he was the voice of Wags the Dog for the Wiggles. Mic works across Music, Magic, Circus and Theatre and continuously tours both nationally and internationally.

Price: $4.95 per student (GST included).

Minimum audience size: 130 students

Shekere Beats

Shekere “pronounced She-Ka-Re” is the name of the African percussion instrument made from the dried fruit of the gourd vine and loosely covered with a wide decorative band of beads. The sound is produced by holding the outer cover of beads in one hand and twisting the gourd across them or simply shaking the entire instrument.

Performance was very much enjoyed by student and teachers. All actively engaged. "I liked the story about Simba and Monkey because the friends helped each other" - Millie (Prep). "I liked the way he got everyone involved. It was great" - Aaron (Yr 6).

Julianne Luxton. Preps - Year 6. Withcott State School. QLD. Mar 2019.

Price: $5.50 per student ($5.00 + $0.50 GST).

Minimum audience size: 130 students