A new online musical show for primary school children and their families, STEM Sisters focuses on historical female scientists and mathematicians whose work was so often unrecognised, but who contributed in so many ways to major developments in our lives today. Never has science been more relevant, but women continue to be under-represented. Using puppetry, music and theatre this production for children aged 8+ shares inspiring true stories and engages us all.
When Jina gets lost in a forest, key women in the history of science and maths including Marie Curie, Ada Lovelace and Hedy Lemarr show up to help her find her way through. Together, they empower the lost child and would-be-scientist with the gifts of curiosity, courage, creativity, persistence and open-mindedness. Join Jina as she searches for Nelloptodes gretae (Greta Thunberg’s beetle) with Maria Sybilla Merian and helps Ada Lovelace with her coding digital soundscape. Learn about the lives, experiences and experiments of Marie Curie through her atom patter song; of stellar quartet of astronomers Hypatia, Caroline Herschel, Mae Jemison, Wang Zhenyi; and GPS inventor Hedy Lamarr, whose scientific skills were considered secondary to her beauty.
Their scientific techniques are showcased through varied puppetry including shadow, marionette, Wayang Golek, Kulit and projection. Their gifts help Jina find her way through the forest and become the best scientist she can be. STEM Sisters uses humour and varied theatrical techniques to engage children and enhance the storytelling, supported by a lyrical and accessible musical score.
HMDT Music’s Creative Director Tertia Sefton-Green says, “We’re delighted we’re able to make our new production available as a film for families and for schools (alongside a body of workshops and teaching resources), and hope that we will be able to achieve our original plans of a live theatre tour in the autumn, when venues reopen. STEM Sisters enables us to extend our national reach to young people with our award-winning methodology of embedding the arts to inspire in this case, a thirst for science and maths.”
STEM Sisters streams 15 March – 11 April 2021, more details can be found here.
