Far Away From Me 12 Feb - 15 Mar 2015
Kevin is a little prince…at least that’s what his mum tells him.
Kevin likes the idea of this, of being a prince on a horse, a beautiful brown horse with a white splotch down his nose, and galloping across the kingdom. His kingdom.
From his bedroom behind the eighth door, on the eighth floor of a tall building (one of eight in a row), Kevin can go. And he wants to go. Far away from here. So his towering imagination takes him on some high-flying adventures. But there’s a storm coming and he needs to decide what’s real and what’s not real as his fast paced fantasies land with a spectacular bump right there on his bed.
Far Away From Me is written by award-winning writer Amy Conroy and is inspired by the classic story of The Princess and The Pea. And when we say 'inspired by', we mean that the show takes the story as you think you know it, turns it on its head and flying through the air until it becomes a very modern, exciting retelling of the fairy tale world and characters of the original. Bringing your children to see the show is sure to give you a fun family arts experience that will be long lasting and will provoke lively family discussions!
Curricular links
Attending Far Away From Me with your class will have relevance to the following aims of the Drama Curriculum:
• To enable the child to become drama literate
• To enable the child to understand the structures and modes of drama and how they create links between play, thought and life.
• To enable the child to begin the process of translating a knowledge of drama into the active exploration of life themes from drama literature, leading to the appreciation of world drama culture
• To form the criteria with which to evaluate the drama texts, written or performed, to which he/she is continually exposed.
The show will also give teachers the opportunity to use the narrative of the play to explore all three strands of the SPHE curriculum. In particular, strand units such as Self Identity, Growing & Changing, Making Decisions, Myself and My Family, My Friends and Other People, Relating to Others and Developing Citizenship are very relevant. Children will be able to identify and empathise with Kevin as he explores and tries to avoid the things that are worrying him. They will then witness and celebrate his growing realisation that he is able to deal with the changes that life brings.
Far Away From Me classroom pack
A free Far Away From Me classroom pack is available for teachers which will provide a range of accessible activities and creative approaches connected to follow up work in the classroom. The pack has been created by leading drama practitioner Joanna Parkes. The activities will support critical responses to the performance. Find out more
Far Away From Me on tour
As well as dates at The Ark, Far Away From Me will be touring to six venues across Ireland in April, all supported by an Arts Council Touring Award.
The show can be seen at:
Draíocht Arts Centre, Blanchardstown
Riverbank Arts Cebtre, Newbridge
Linenhall Arts Centre, Castlebar
Dunamaise Arts Centre, Portlaoise
Pavilion Theatre, Dun Laoghaire
Town Hall Theatre, Galway
This Mid-Term, get Behind the Scenes…
In a series of post-show chats, you can meet the team behind Far Away From Me and hear about their roles, how they created their work and a little bit about their career in theatre. There will be a chance to ask them any questions that you may have.
Tuesday 17 – Friday 20 February after the 4pm show of Far Away From Me.
Free entry to ticketholders for that show.
Tue 17 February: Meet Amy Conroy, Writer and Director
Wed 18 February: Meet John Crudden, Lighting Designer
Thu 19 February: Meet Raymond Scannell, Sound Designer
Fri 20 February: Meet Maree Kearns, Set & Costume Designer
Sat 21 February: Meet our performers, Niamh McGrath, Peter Corboy, Emily Aoibheann & Elaine McCague
If you are coming to a different performance of Far Away from Me then you are welcome to come along at 4.50pm on the day of the Behind the Scenes... chat that you want to take part in and if there is space, we will allocate places on a first come, first served basis.
