Axel Scheffler News

Internationally acclaimed theatre company Tall Stories today announces that The Gruffalo's Child is to follow in her father's giant footsteps with a Christmas season in the West End!

Adapted from the bestselling books by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler (creators of The Gruffalo), it's now time for Tiddler & Other Terrific Tales to swim up the Thames and into Leicester Square Theatre for a summer full of fun!

Best-selling children's author Julia Donaldson and illustrator Axel Scheffler's much-loved tale The Gruffalo will be brought to life at Arts Centre Melbourne's Playhouse from 15 - 26 November 2017. Direct from the West End, the new production for little ones tells the story of a mouse who heads off on a daring adventure through the deep dark wood.

???????A brand new season of West End musicals, gripping dramas, dynamic dance and one night concerts on sale next week at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre.

Jennifer Sutherland, co-founder of the multi award-winning Scamp Theatre, has launched Freckle Productions with a focus on bringing inspirational stories to the stage for children, young people and families.

Bristol Old Vic today announced the next raft of productions to hit its stage throughout 2017.   

Straight from London's West End, this truly heart-warming adaptation of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler's bestselling book is bursting at the seams with Scamp Theatre's inimitable style (Stick Man, Tiddler & Other Terrific Tales) and promises wit, drama, and wedding bells as you're invited to Betty O'Barley and Harry O'Hay's glorious wedding day.

Spring 2017 has Arrived at the New Theatre with an eclectic mix of shows guaranteed to delight and entertain audiences. >From blockbuster musicals to special one-off performances, from classic drama to family favourites, this is an unmissable programme of theatre. 

We first came across Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler's now much-loved book The Gruffalo in 1999, the year it was published. My co-artistic director Toby was working as an editor for Macmillan Children's Books (the Gruffalo publishers), and we thought it was a brilliant story that might work well on stage for children aged 3+ and their grown-ups.

Following record-breaking sales across the UK tour and during a 6-week Christmas season at Warwick Arts Centre, Scamp Theatre have announced that the award-winning Stick Man's return to the West End has been extended.

An exciting summer and autumn program featuring a witchy ride through the skies, a New York-based clowning duo with breathtaking air sculptures, Canadian "sheep" on the lawn and a fake-bloody Shakespearean tale will make Arts Centre Melbourne the place for families when the weather warms up.

Southbank Centre's Winter Festival supported by NatWest returns for the holiday season with a packed programme of festive fun and entertainment for all the family from performances including a new version of hit show BIANCO by UK's leading circus company NoFit State Circus, the Tony award-winning musical Million Dollar Quartet and cabaret sensation Le Gateau Chocolat's first ever work for children (and the young at heart) Duckie, to festive concerts, social dances, creative workshops, choirs and a weekend of events inspired by the theme of giving and charity. The 21 acre site is transformed into a winter landscape with a Nordic feel, designed by Hemingway Design, with a sky-high Norwegian tree, Nordic 'Gonks'- mythological Scandinavian creatures, hundreds of Christmas trees, walks of twinkling lights and the return of the bustling Winter Market.  Alternative treats are also on offer across the season including BUMP Rollerdisco and the return of the spectacular Vintage New Year's Eve Party. With the full programme on sale from today, Southbank Centre's Winter Festival programme is guaranteed to get everyone in the festive spirit this Christmas.

Currently enjoying its 15th anniversary at the Lyric Theatre, where it runs until 8 January, The Gruffalo Live returns to South Africa this December. The national tour follows on from a sell-out run at the Cape Town Fringe where the production made its debut this September. This also marked the first time Tall Stories' smash-hit production had been staged on the African continent. Having previously toured to over 500 venues across the globe, The Gruffalo Live first opened on 12 May 2001 at Chester Gateway theatre and since then has performed in 15 countries and 6 continents, played twice at the Sydney Opera House, twice on Broadway, once at the National Theatre and is now in its ninth West End season.

Get ready for a 'whale of a time' at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) this summer as the charming stage production, The Snail and the Whale comes to the Cremorne Theatre from Friday 6 to Sunday 22 January 2017 as part of the QPAC SummerSet program.

With John Malkovich's acclaimed production of Good Canary entering its final week, Rose Theatre Kingston today announces its new season for 2017.  Headlining the season is the world premiere of My Brilliant Friend, a two-part adaptation of Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan quartet of novels which have become a global literary sensation.  The true identity of the author is a mystery, with Elena Ferrante a pseudonym used by the writer, but speculation over the weekend suggested that the author had been unmasked.  

The Cape Town Fringe returns to the Mother City from 22 September - 8 October this year, with a programme that runs into the school holidays as well as over three weekends. A host of family-friendly daytime and early evening shows will be performed, with at least four productions appealing to the tiniest of tykes on this year's line-up.

Best-selling children's author Julia Donaldson and illustrator Axel Scheffler's magical tale Room on the Broom will fly into Arts Centre Melbourne's Playhouse from 4 - 15 January 2017. UK theatre company Tall Stories and Australia's CDP Theatre Producers - the team behind the stage adaptations The Gruffalo and The Gruffalo's Child - will bring to life the award-winning book in a play filled with songs, puppets, laughs and scary fun for children aged three and up and their grown-ups.

The National Arts Festival announced this week that it is producing the hit Tall Stories musical adaptation of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler's award-winning picture book, THE GRUFFALO.

Scamp Theatre is proud to present their latest production, a truly heart-warming adaptation of The Scarecrows' Wedding, based on the book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, playing in the West End at Leicester Square Theatre from tonight 9 July to Sunday 4 September 2016. There will be press performances on Friday 15 and Today 16 July at 2.00pm.

This July everyone's favourite furry monster roars back into the West End in celebration of his 15th anniversary on stage! Tall Stories' hugely popular production of The Gruffalo first opened on 12 May 2001 - just 18 months after the book was first published. The show returns to the Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue from 6 July and has just extended through to 8 January 2017, forming a huge part of this year's West End calendar.