“A Charming and Cheery Children’s Show”
It’s always lovely to see children coming to perhaps their first theatre show and experiencing the joy of live performance, and there would be few better things to bring your kids along to than ‘Doon the Watter’ by PACE Theatre.
‘Doon the Watter’ is a cheerful play about two sisters on their holidays to a Scottish island, telling each other stories and singing together. There are plenty of puppets, from mermaids swimming through the sea, to seagulls, to little seals with party hats, which are often brought up close to the audience for the kids to interact with. There was a constant back and forth with all the kids, even the shy ones hanging at the back, which was well-handled by the two performers, Amy Gallagher and Iona Ramsey.
These performers keep the show bustling along, moving scenery, passing props back and forth and singing the charming songs. The music by Alan Orr is bright and engaging, and coupled with Iona Ramsay’s lyrics and Lyndsey Graham’s script, it creates a feeling of a splendid day by the sea. They also manage to slide in some nice educational moments for the kids, such as cleaning up rubbish and learning a phrase of Gaelic.
Overall the show was well paced, excepting a couple of moments where the scene changes slowed the tempo slightly. However all the children in the audience (and their adults!) were engaged the whole time, cheered loudly, and several were begging to come back and see it again by the end. ‘Doon the Watter’ is a very charming and very Scottish show that makes for a wonderful day out.
‘Doon the Watter’ continues its tour around Scotland to St Andrews on Friday 16th October, Aberdeen Sunday 18th October, and Cumbernauld on Sunday 25th October.