1:08pm Thursday 4th February 2010
Birmingham Stage Company founder Neal Foster tells Viv Hardwick why he was determined to put a children’s version of Horrible Science on the stage.
IT’S taken two-and-a-half years of research, but finally Horrible Science has followed Horrible Histories onto the stage in a bid to get children excited about one of their least favourite subjects. Birmingham Stage Company (BSC) founder and actor/manager Neal Foster admits that it has been an expensive task to adapt Nick Arnold’s books (illustrated by Tony De Saulles) and create a child-friendly script in time for a tour which takes in Darlington Civic Theatre next week.
“It was really difficult to adapt the books for the stage. The problem is to find and create the story which doesn’t make us think we’re watching a series of experiments which could be done in any classroom. We wanted a drama where you care about the characters and at the same time you’re learning about science and that was very difficult to achieve.
We only got the plotline we wanted in October and finally made the breakthrough,”
says Foster.
“We had a really difficult year financially, like a lot of other people, but I made it very clear to everybody that I wasn’t prepared to compromise on the quality. So this year we’re doing better than ever and I’d rather spend up front than make cut-backs and end up with a poorer show and damage our reputation.
“I always think that good theatre wins out in the end. A lot of big producers have come in almost thinking there’s a quick buck to be made and putting on shows which weren’t good enough. I think they quickly learned that it’s the adults who are paying for the tickets and if it ain’t good enough for the children who are watching, it ain’t gonna work. Children don’t go to sleep when they’re bored they start talking, fidgeting and asking to go to the toilet. So I think some of my competitors have had a nasty shock,” says Foster, who has taken the lead role in the current tour of Newcastle-born David Almond’s Skellig.
“It was a natural progression for us to follow Horrible Histories (adapted from Sunderland-born Terry Deary’s colourful books) which has worked so well as a show. I really thought that the next challenge was to make science interesting because I’m the theatre producer who got an F in chemistry. I loved physics and biology but never enjoyed chemistry, and science was never my favourite subject. So I thought if we could produce a show which would get children excited and get them to understand science, I’d have made up for the mistakes I made as a schoolchild,” says Foster.
He thinks Arnold’s books are fantastic at introducing youngsters to science and got enthusiastic feedback from last Wednesday’s opening performance at Horsham. After Darlington, the show also visits Sunderland Empire and York’s Grand Opera House.
“Bogglevision (the 3D sections of the show created by Teesside’s Amazing Interactive company and first seen in Horrible Histories) is better than its ever been. It really is knockout. In a way I feel that science lends itself more to 3D better than anything else.
The objects involved are perfect to throw out into the audience. Previously it was arrows, cannon balls, insects and mummies but this time we’ve got rockets and even a planet appearing to fly into the audience, which takes the show into another dimension,” says Foster.
The adaptation was in the hands of Mark Williams who had to find a way of holding young attention for two years.
“We went for the idea of it being set in a Horrible Science theme park where a computer brain which controls the rides decides that its fed up of children who can’t understand science and it will inflict it on the world,” he explains.
The show’s hero is ten-year-old Billy Miller who has to save the world by surviving a series of challenges involving giant bacteria, gravity becoming a hundred times stronger and all the electricity being shut off.
“It forces Billy to understand science in order to complete the challenge. It needs the help of the audience in order for him to do it.
I think you’d be hard-pushed to find a better science show than this one. I knew we’d got it right when I read the latest draft of the script and wanted to ask more questions like ‘how does this work?’ which achieves the goal of getting children to ask more and get them interested and excited about discovering how the world works. That’s what science is all about,” says Foster.
The horrible side, of course, is asking why most people produce 50,000 litres of spit in a lifetime –enough to fill 100 baths?
“The beauty of the whole ‘Horrible’ series is that it’s a very clever idea to take the disgusting, rude and funny stuff and have that as your starting point. There’s lots of things like farting and naughtiness but some good hard science as well. It’s a clever way in and I know the teachers were as pleased as the kids when they saw the show,” he adds.
Horrible Science doesn’t put Horrible Histories in the shade and Romans, Egyptians, Tudors and Victorians will be back.
“I’m always mystified that when we only have four people running the whole company, and sometimes we’ve got three or four shows on at the same time, and I know other companies doing fewer shows have a 100 people running it. I think ‘how can we do what we do with just four people?’. But I think, rock bottom, the reason we have survived is because of the quality of our shows.”
■ Horrible Science, Darlington Civic Theatre, Tuesday-Saturday. Tickets: Adults £12, children £8.50. Family ticket £35. Age range: 6+ Box Office: 01325-486-555 darilgtonarts.co.uk June 10-12, Sunderland Empire. 0844-847- 2499 sunderlandempire.co.uk September 21-25, Grand Opera House, York.
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