Feature: BLUEY'S BIG PLAY at Palace Theater

For Rosemary Myers, the director of BLUEY’S BIG PLAY, the biggest challenge of bringing the popular Australian children’s program to the stage is “a matter of physics.”

How does one take a cartoon canine family like the Heelers, that fits comfortably on a 40-inch television screen and expand them to fit on a stage large enough to accommodate well over a thousand people?

“Windmill Theatre Company (where Myers also serves as the artistic director) regularly tours the US and internationally more generally,” Myers said. “However, our productions are generally of a smaller scale. I have never been involved in a tour as extensive or as long as BLUEY’S BIG PLAY before.

 “Working with Andrew Kay and BBC Live has been an eye-opening and mind-boggling experience regarding the logistical complexities involved in making a tour like this happen.”

Myers and the traveling crew will bring BLUEY’S BIG PLAY into Columbus for three shows at the Palace Theater (34 W. Broad Street in downtown Columbus) on June 30 and July 1. The show, which uses massive puppets to bring the canine family to life, will have a 6 p.m. show on June 30 and a 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. show on July 1.

Creating scenes on stage for the award-winning children’s show, which can be seen on Disney Plus, can be a challenge, according to Myers.

“Animation is nimble. It’s fast and unbound by the rules of physics, so making sure we could meet that dynamism with puppetry was my biggest, I won’t say concern – challenge!” Myers said.

“The script (by BLUEY creator Joe Brumm travels) around the Heeler house at rapid speed so we knew we would have to incorporate clever scenic design and theatre fly towers to be able to do that. We use lots of traditional theatre tricks to bring the show to life.”

Another obstacle Myers and company had to overcome was making characters that were large enough to be seen through out large theaters like the Palace, which holds 2,695 people. Myers said her group “pushed the scale to the maximum for the puppeteers” to ensure everyone could feel like they were a part of the action.

The late comedian Robin Williams once joked about the panic his children experienced when going to Disneyland: “Mickey Mouse to a three-year-old is a 6-foot rat.”

Myers’ experiences with the audience facing characters that are way beyond the size of what they have seen on their television has been contrary to William’s.

“Children have very fluid imaginations and great capacity to engage in story. They totally buy in,” Myers said. “Even adults tell us they don’t see the puppeteers even though they aren’t hidden. I think the skill of the puppeteers really adds to the experience of the show.

“Kids are always interacting in the most brilliant, beautiful, and hilarious ways. I love when kids bring their BLUEY toys to watch the show and seeing whole families (including grandparents) dress up as the characters when they come along.”

Perhaps the biggest asset the live show has going for it is that it builds on a truly beloved series. BLUEY has captured the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards for “Best Children’s Program all four years since its debut in 2018. In March 2019, the program had become the most downloaded program for ABC's video on demand with 21.3 million total episode plays. The following year, that number jumped to 152 million and then climbed again to 261 million by 2020.

The show has attracted a number of cameos from surfer Layne Beachley (as a surf-loving Shetland Sheepdog), Robert Irwin (the son of the late Steve Irwin as a dingo who works in a toy store), actress Rose Byrne (as Brandy, Chilli’s older sister), and HAMILTON composer Lin-Manuel Miranda (as a Calypso storytelling horse).

The show has been lauded for its positive portrayal of family life. Bandit, the father of the Heeler household, is sort of a throwback to Mike Brady of THE BRADY BUNCH as opposed to the oafish Homer Simpson of THE SIMPSONS or the absentee parents of Timmy Turner in FAIRLY ODD PARENTS. In BLUEY, parents play, work with, and learn from their children, a rarity in most television shows.

“Its relatability, and the way Joe Brumm has perfectly captured the truth and joy of contemporary family life (makes it so popular),” Myers said. “The dilemmas the characters face really resonate with children and caregivers.

“I think global audiences love the Australian humor and sensibility the show brings. At the epicenter of every episode and at the core of the series is the act of play between a child and parent, which is not only fun and entertaining but inspirational … It is a show with some real teachable moments not only to children but also to parents.”

Myers said those elements are carried over to the live show, where the kids are learning about what it means to be a sister while the mother, Chili, reflects on her relationship with her sister.

“I know for Joe Brumm it is important that the revelations for Bluey and Bingo are paralleled for the adult characters,” Myers said. “I love the idea that being a parent is as much of a learning curve as being a child.”

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