Grab your gaudiest outfit and make some room, because it’s time to clown around! Originally slated for this year’s Edinburgh Fringe, Circle Troupe’s debut show Mischief Makers is now available for at-home buffoonery during lock-down. Molly Bater’s brand new family-fun performance offers kids everything they’re missing while stuck at home.
Guiding their watchers through a training in professional mischief, Molly Bater and Natasha Haward exhaust every opportunity for laughs while relying on a fundamental plan to teach their viewers. From slapstick and prop comedy reminiscent of the circus, to puppetry and interactive quizzing, Mischief Makers is a bright and splashing reminder that though the world is on hold, childhoods are not.
Children will meet the ancient elders of mischief and learn the positive ways mischief can be used. Curiosity, carefree sympathy, kindness, wit, and more come to define this crash course in mischief through Bater and Haward’s mixed media approach to teaching these abstract concepts. Interactive elements are a large part of the show so parents rest assured, the kids aren’t going crazy, they’re just learning along the way! Equally, the swift presentation of the show keeps it running smoothly without any of its varied components being rushed. The show really feels like the best parts of Saturday morning cartoons!
Kids are sure to fall under the silly spell of this show; if not by the boisterous puppets, then by the random facts they’ll know by the end of it. Did you know a polar bear’s coat isn’t actually white? In fact, it reflects a muted tone of the colour of its surroundings through follicles in its fur. Overall, through its engaging scrapbook approach, Mischief Makers simply brings the “madness and mayhem to you” at home.
Additionally, parents should be proud to support Bater and Haward, not only for delighting their kids for an hour, but for their persevering altruism. Both have dedicated themselves to improving the world by telling stories, from entertaining refugees in camps to establishing community theatre in Saudi Arabia. Even in a time of global anxiety Bater and Haward have found a way to let their mischief and silliness be used for good, and even be taught to the next generation.
