Aardman Animations Ltd., the award-winning UK studio, joined forces with Australia’s award-winning Circa Contemporary Circus for this new live production for the whole family, featuring the much-loved sheep and his friends, which opened last week at Melbourne’s Regent Theatre.
The show’s stint at the Regent follows its successful debut in Brisbane, where audiences enjoyed the unique combination of Aardman’s signature Shaun the Sheep animation with Circa’s blend of live movement, dance, theatre and circus.
Reception has been positive
Shaun the Sheep’s Circus Show has been receiving positive reviews since opening, with the Courier Mail saying: “What a very fun show this is. Acrobatic sheep. Happy, toe-tapping, earworm music. Good, wholesome, laugh-out-loud humour…The playful charm, mischief and slapstick humour of Shaun the Sheep mix brilliantly with Circa’s daredevil acrobatics that draws audible gasps from the audience.”
Limelight Magazine called it “an imaginative journey” with “many breath-taking moments,” while Blue Curtains Brisbane said: “Whoever says sheep don’t fly, has clearly never seen the extreme physicality and awe-inspiring feats that feature at the core of Circa shows. If modern circus portrays characters and tells stories, then “Shaun The Sheep’s Circus Show” is modern circus at its playfully charming best.”
Circa Director Yaron Lifschitz said, “Shaun the Sheep is a playful, rambunctious feast of humour, good spirits and the triumph of the little guy. The medium of circus is a perfect vehicle for bringing these qualities to the stage.
“Melding the worlds of stage and screen and incorporating the extreme physicality of circus without losing the emotional depth and charm of the original is a major creative challenge – it’s the sort of thing we at Circa thrive on.”
Populartiy of Aardman characters in Australia
However, this isn’t the first time that Aardman’s iconic characters have visited Australia. During the run of The Magic of Aardman – Wallace & Gromit & Friends Exhibition at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) from 29 June 2017 to 30 January 2018, this popular touring exhibition welcomed over 110k visitors.
Shaun the Sheep’s Circus Show is produced by Shaun Comerford and Yaron Lifschitz with QPAC, Screen Queensland, Merrigong Theatre Company and Circa Contemporary Circus by special arrangement with Aardman Animations.
Last year, Aardman Animation also announced that it is working with video game developer and publisher BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Europe to develop a brand new IP.
All images credit Prudence Upton
