My Friend Snow poster
As snow clouds gather around the castle turrets, Jape the Jester dreams of one day being as funny as his famous dad. But how can Jape live up to everyone’s expectations? All seems hopeless until the most mysterious and extraordinary new friend appears, as if from nowhere. Together they discover that within every dark cloud there can be a silver lining.
My Friend Snow was an enchanting medieval treasure trove of tunes and tones, textures and tinctures, featuring original music and design inspired by the middle ages – with a contemporary twist for today’s audience.
The production presented in fully-integrated British Sign Language and English and was the 3rd of 6 plays developed in this format by the company and which toured nationally.
Find out more about BSL and English bilingual theatre
You can access the script of this play via the British Library’s MPS Modern Playscripts Collection.
Chris Elwell has been the Director of Half Moon Theatre on White Horse Road since 1997. He talks about My Friend Snow, a bi-lingual English/British Sign Language production for 2-7 year olds.
Chris Elwell talks about the impetus for and aesthetic of creating bilingual work in British Sign Language and English. Interviewed by Kavana Joyett.
Designer, Alison Cartledge talks about My Friend Snow and how her set design needed to accommodate a speaker, so the Deaf performer could feel the vibrations of the music through the floor.
Theatre designer, Alison Cartledge talks about illustrating story books to accompany the productions for young children, which Half Moon Theatre produced during the 2000s. Interviewed by Toni Tsaera.
My Friend Snow soundtrack, Composer Robert Lee
“Chris Elwell’s play for 2 – 7 year-olds features enough tunes, tumbles and fantastical characters to thrill any child, with integrated sign language throughout.”
RNID One-in-Seven Magazine
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