Children’s Festival
Please return in 2012 to view info on the next Tablelands Folk Festival. Below are details of the 2011 event.
What is behind great Folk Music? The ability to take observations from life and nature, and compose music and lyrics.
This year the Children’s Festival is looking at how INSECTS might be the inspiration for any number of art forms. How do they sound? How do they move? How do they feel? How do they look? Fifteen children have been composing poetry, sounds, dance and GIANT puppets, of insects, for sharing with the children attending this year’s Folk Festival. Children will be creating fabulous designs to wear or carry in the Children’s parade that gathers at 5:30pm on Saturday 22nd.
Facepainters will be on hand, while Storytellers will enthrall young listeners. Meanwhile the Ergon stage will see a wonderful range of children and family performers through Saturday and Sunday morning. And new to the Children’s Festival, because some children need a little reprieve from the excitement – there will be a Chill Cave.
(signed) The Organisers
Because we’re as excited as children.
Allspice
Allspice is an Acapella singing group lead by Bryony Barrett. Anyone is welcome to attend. They meet at 10.30 in Yungaburra on market day. The songs they sing are from all over the world and in the native language. They’re a fresh and spicy group, flavoured by different life experiences. Their primary aim is to have fun learning new songs.
Belladonna
Amelia & Briony Benefield, & Gabriella Normington
A local group who have grown up with the Tableland Folk Festival, Belladonna are this year making their debute in the main program. This inspirational “trio of best friends, playing music we love together”, will be playing 50 minutes of original compositions. They describe their music as an intermingling of choral harmonies, djembe drumming, fast-paced acoustic guitar, catchy bass-lines, melodic piano and the occasional banjo strum!
Doyle Family Fun Show
The Doyle Family Fun Show is one of the most popular children’s interactive entertainment troupes in Australia, having performed for the past five years the length of the Australian sea-board, from the tip of Australia to Melbourne in the south their interactive shows always put ‘smile on dials’. Their second album ‘You Can Do It’, a follow up to the popular ‘Mondo Fun’, is due for release at the beginning of October. Veteran Australian performer/songwriter Terry Doyle is joined by the talented face-painting/ukulele playing singer Rachel Bradley. The pair encourage the children to dress up, put some makeup on, grab an instrument and join the show, playing and singing their way through the many Doyle penned ‘Aussie songs for kids of the world’.
Jess JONES
Jess JONES is a contemporary performer/maker, with a Bachelor of Contemporary Art/Dance from Deakin Uni, Melbourne. She is interested in collaborative processes and working across art forms. Jess has performed with OnEdge, Cairns; See Hear Now, Townsville, Zane Saunders ‘Blueprint’, Bonemap ‘Brink’, and ‘FpFf’, Cairns. Jesse is currently undertaking studies in Community Development, teaches contemporary dance on the Atherton Tablelands, and works on Youth & Community Cultural Development projects in the region. Info about her current dance project is at www.movedancetnq.com.
INSECT DANCING at the Tablelands Folk Festival, Children’s Festival, is a movement and sound choreography of creeping, crawling, jumping, snatching, scratching, screeking, chomping insects, for everyone: to use in the Children’s Parade or just for the fun of it.
Mime and Magic with Danny Simony
As master of disguise, trickery and slap stick comedy; Danny Simony is Australia’s finest entertainer of his type. Danny will enthrall, not only the children, but also the adults with his antics and is one very special act that is not to be missed at this year’s festival. www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZ3OSXx3DOw
Mind-boggling Bugs
Oral storyteller Helen Ramoutsaki returns to the Tablelands Folk Festival all a-buzz with the antics of our six-legged insect friends. Helen’s dynamic and interactive storytelling will have you all of a-flutter. For children of all ages, including you ..
The Children’s Music Workshop
The workshop is appropriate for 6 to 12 year olds. It will start with some fun singing games. Children will learn a song in a game format firstly then learn the pitch names and hand-signs. They will sing hiding words in their heads and sing in rounds before they transfer what they have learned onto a simple pitched instrument called a chime – bar. The song will then be orchestrated on these simple instruments. In summary: learning a simple folk song, playing it on an instrument and then working it as a whole group piece.
Weird Tales from Other Times and other Places
Michael Quinn has spent many years working to save the Djabugay language of the Cairns rainforest area. This project gave him a love of indigenous mythology. As a storyteller Michael draws on ancient tales from all around the world and with the participation of his audience seeks to bring them to life in the here and now. In the UK he has visited hundreds of schools, primary and secondary and performed at festivals and a variety of venues.
Yoga for Kids
Tanya Veld guides tanyaveld@live.com.au 0428 590 283