Iris Theatre Online Christmas Show

 Finally, after a year in which Zoom became the way to hold all kinds of meetings and soirees, here comes a use of Zoom to entertain. Iris Theatre created an online interactive version of The Snow Queen which runs up until Boxing Day. I'd love them to carry this on throughout winter as it's such a cosy show, and a folktale I loved as a kid. This live storytelling experience includes animated characters and green screen backgrounds alongside a single actor, Leda Douglas, doing a brilliant job to entertain the kids. I messed up big time though as I told my sister that my niece and nephew wouldn't be on screen (because that had been my experience of Zoom events and talks all year), but the audience are visible throughout the show. My sister had screened it through the TV though, so it was too late, and they missed out on having their names mentioned by the storyteller, which I think is such a nice touch to involve the kids. They still loved it though, they're age 6 and 3 and were both captivated and joining in the whole time. There's singing, movement, finding props, and shouting out things that the kids are asked to participate with. This was so nice and Christmassy, and an hour of spellbinding magic the kids loved. It comes with a free activity book that they got stuck in to straight away afterwards. I look forward to more Zoom shows from Iris Theatre as the London lockdown inevitably carries on into 2021. Gah!The Snow Queen is £20 per household and lasts one hour - book tickets here. My Zoom invite was a press invitation.