The Wellies have splashed for the final time this autumn!
Robin Norton-Hale
General Director at English Touring Opera, freelance writer and stage director.
No, I can't promise there's no more wet weather on the way. But ETO's opera for young people with learning disabilities has hung up its waterproofs for the season. It was such a joy to watch the immense skill of the performers and complete engagement of the young people watching when I went to see The Wellies at Riverside School in Wood Green.
"I have never seen such a fantastic production adapted for SEN [Special Educational Needs]. Phenomenal from start to finish - THANK YOU!" Teacher, Schools Performance (Nottingham)
These shows are performed by the same performers who are seen on stage and in the orchestra pit of our operas for grown ups (this season in Rimsky-Korsakov's Snowmaiden) - the audience in these schools deserve the best. Thank you to composer Joanna Marie Skillet, writer Tatty Hennessy, director Abigail Kelly, designer Sorcha Corcoran and all the performers and other artists, producers, administrators and technicians who helped create this life-affirming experience.
The Wellies included:
1 astronaut and 1 chef bon bon
12 giant chippy chips
6 singers
4 instrumentalists
11 members of crew and creative team
29 hours of performance (over 1,700 minutes!)
33 performances
26 venues
126 pages of music
554 slides of captions
1,936 miles travelled
1,680 audience members
"Joyous, entertaining, life-affirming ... This show should be in every Primary and SEN [Special Educational Needs] school in the UK" Audience Member, Lighthouse (Poole)