Continuing to step up to the plate and produce specially created live content, Perth Theatre’s carries on the winds of success they sailed out of 2020 upon which following their hugely successful online Panto: Oh Yes We Are! A Quest For Long Lost Light And Laughter. Met with praise and adoration across twenty-five countries, the outpouring of positive feedback reaffirmed Perth Theatre & Perth Concert Hall’s commitment to producing live events in the coming year while the venues remain closed. Building from the panto, Perth Theatre is proud to announce their next live online family show – First Piano On The Moon starring Will Pickvance.

Featuring lighting designs from Fee Dalgleish, with animations and video from Tim Reid – First Piano On The Moon streams directly from Pickvance’s studio for a series of school performances in early March. Rarer than an eclipse, there are two public performances available on March 13th of the five-star rated, audience favourite production first performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2019. With demand looking to be high, early booking is a must for any budding musicians keen to watch the “half-man, half-piano”.

Suitable for ages seven and over, First Piano On The Moon tells the story of a young boy who dreams about playing in front of a live audience (something we all daydream of at this moment). But when the fantasy becomes a reality, the anxiety of people discovering the truth lowers the happiness of the event. Because maybe, just maybe, the whole world will come to realise that he can’t play the piano all that well, and he can only mess around and make people laugh.

Re-shaping and mingling the compositions of Mozart, alongside the unlikeliest of birthday invitations, a chase throughout Salzburg  First Piano On The Moon also features an appearance from the maestro of marvel himself, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Talking not only on the strength and resilience of the industry but Pickvance also opens up about the way forward for theatre, live performers and music and the importance of recognising the diversity and accessibility digital platforms have offered:

“For me, online theatre is a whole new genre in its own right, and it’s just getting started. I think we may in fact come to recognise this period as an important moment in changing art practices. The resilience of creatives, artists, musicians and performers evolving to the current challenges, together with the ongoing need for audiences to be nourished and entertained has seen this new medium accelerate into the mainstream over the last 12 months. As technology improves, this will only get more fascinating. I am delighted to be working with Lu Kemp and Perth Theatre to bring this online premiere to people’s screens, wherever they may be.”

On the pleasant and warm reception, the Perth Theatre Panto received, Perth Theatre’s artistic director Lu Kemp says:

“We were blown away by the success of our panto. The amazing feedback we received from audiences confirmed our conviction that, even though we can’t invite audiences into our venues, live theatre and music continue to play an important role in people’s lives. Perhaps now, more than ever, a period of total escapism with the family or with schoolfriends, in the company – albeit virtual – of others, is something that people really need and appreciate. We’re lucky to be able to employ the services of many of the technical wizards behind our panto to help deliver what is going to be a really fun, inventive and off-beat mix of theatre and musical storytelling.”

Running for fifty minutes, the production includes a post-show Q&A chat which runs for a further 10 minutes and serves as a terrific way for kids and families to get involved with the show.

Tickets for the event cost £5 per device here, but for school’s pricing and availability we recommend contacting: ticketing@horsecross.co.uk

Photo Credit – Peter Dibdin