Lemony S Puppet Theatre and Critical Stages Touring
Written and Directed by: Sarah Kriegler
Production Design & Puppet Maker: Tamara Rewse
Co-Writer, Mathematics & Cultural Consultant: Deniz Aslan
Dramaturg: Ben Grant
Puppet Consultant: Jacob Williams
Production & Stage Manager: Millie Levakis-Lucas
CAST
Ada: Ada Williams Kriegler
Asmin: Asmida Aslan
Brother / Babbage: Mehran Tajbakhsh
Lady Byron / Mother: Caroline Lee
Travel through time and space in this inspiring world premiere story about discovery and connection from Lemony S Puppet Theatre.
In this world premiere adventure from Lemony S Puppet Theatre, a magical meeting through cyberspace will unite two teenage girls from different centuries in a shared passion for numbers, the potential of science, and the role of education in achieving our dreams.
Asmin, a newly-arrived Turkish refugee is struggling with remote learning when a magical cat (and the wonders of cyberspace) lead her to Victorian-era mathematician Ada Lovelace. Together, connected across time, they find commonality in numbers and philosophy, and inspiration to follow their dreams.
In this imagined place, shaped by real events, we explore how far we have come in education rights for girls, how far we have to go, and the world-altering shifts that occur when we empower young women to reach their full potential.
Made in collaboration with math teacher and Turkish refugee, Bilge Aslan, the story combines the real-life experiences of girls worldwide who have been denied an education with the story of Ada Lovelace and her world-altering inventions. It’s an inspiring new adventure told through the beautiful magical realism for which Lemony S Puppet Theatre are renowned.
Available to Tour
April 2023 – November 2024
Artform
Theatre for Families, Puppetry
Audience
Ideal ages 9-14 years
Grades 3+
Suitable for 7+
Duration
1 hour, no interval
Venue Format
Theatre, Civic/Cultural Centre, Black Box, Studio
Bump In
Bump in and perform same day
Touring Party
4 performers and 2 crew (TBC)
WATCH THE DEVELOPMENT SHOWING
Footage from the April 2022 development showing is available for viewing upon request. Please email Rebecca Meston for more information and an access link: rebecca (@) criticalstages.com.au
Selling Points and Audience
Key Audiences:
Schools: add to your student’s lessons in drama, mathematics, and science with an experience that unites these three areas of study in an engaging and inspiring way. An education kit for the production will be produced for the 2023 season.
Families: families with children aged 7-15 will embrace this contemporary story about the privilege of education and the inspiration that comes from discovery.
Marketing Selling Points
- Puppetry making and performance workshops available
- Education opportunities, including a documentary layer of interview with Turkish and Australian students
- Great alignment potential with libraries, museums, and science festivals
Podcast
Alongside the stage performance, there is also a podcast being developed by Roslyn Oades with collaborators in Turkey – looking at what it’s like to be a 14-year-old girl in Victoria and also in Turkey. Due for release in 2023 in the leadup to the premiere season.
About Lemony S Puppet Theatre
Lemony S Puppet Theatre is a small, award-winning independent theatre company with a big reputation. With puppet theatre at the core of their work, Lemony S Puppet Theatre use puppetry to disarm the audience and go deep to the core of what it is to be human – to attach meaning to symbols and signs, to empathise and access the innate human ability to “suspend one’s disbelief”. They have a commitment to extending the form of puppetry beyond what is expected and constantly re-invent their practice, developing new styles and performance techniques. Based in Melbourne, their works have been seen throughout Australia and across the world.
Storytelling is essential to being human. It is how we learn, make sense of our world and imagine a better one. At Lemony S Puppet Theatre, they make work for both adult audiences and children alike, exploring theatre like metaphysicians, using puppetry to interrogate questions about the nature of objects in the world around us and relish in puppetry’s ability to examine metaphor three dimensionally.
See more at www.lemonys.net.au
What We’re Working On
Documentary
A further layer to the work will be a documentary sound layer of interviews with Turkish and Australian students on home schooling and education. This documentary layer is being undertaken by Roslyn Oades in collaboration with two film makers Delizia Flaccavento and Aysegul Selenga Taskent who work and reside in Turkey and will overlay the live action of the show.
Casting and Puppetry Concepts
- Young actors will play Ada and Asmin
- A male-identifying actor/puppeteer will play Ada and Asmin’s fathers as well as other characters.
- A female-identifying actor/puppeteer will play Lady Byron as well as other characters
- The mechanical horse will be a central set piece/puppet that possible can support the
weight of the actors on its back. - There is a puppet cat character based on Ada’s beloved pet cat called Mrs Puffs who is the conduit by which the girls meet.
What They’re Saying
“superb, deeply affecting… a charming and surprisingly touching, human drama in miniature.” The Age for Apples and Ladders
“The show doesn’t feel like a “puppetry production”, rather the subtleness and beauty of this puppetry elevates the telling of a love story so it stays with you long after you leave the theatre.” Arts Hub for Picasso and his Dog
“leaves you a bit in awe of the emotional authenticity that puppetry… can achieve in portraying deeply human truths.” The Age for Taking The Waters
“as finely devised and realised piece of theatre, of any kind, as you will see. For children, who deserve nothing but the best in their early experience of the arts, it is a gift beyond measure.” See Saw Magazine for Picasso and his Dog
Introducing Ada Lovelace
English mathematician Ada Lovelace, the daughter of poet Lord Byron, has been called “the first computer programmer” for writing an algorithm for a computing machine in the mid-1800s. Born Augusta Ada Byron, Countess of Lovelace, she showed her gift for mathematics at an early age.
