Blue Planet
By Andri Snær Magnason
Directed by Professor Myrna Wyatt Selkirk
April 2nd-11th, 2015
Attention all children, all those who are young at heart and all lovers of theatre, adventure and fun! Blue Planet is a play for children by the Icelandic author Andri Snær Magnason, adapted from his award-winning children’s book The Story of the Blue Planet. Although the play’s target spectators are children between the ages of eight and thirteen, Blue Planet will in fact enchant audiences of all ages.
As a child, Magnason was captivated by “the Icelandic highlands, the cruelty of Grimm’s Fairy Tales, the weirdness of Icelandic folk tales, the Bible’s message of peace, the nature documentaries of David Attenborough and Space Lego”. Magnason manages to weave all of these eclectic threads seamlessly into Blue Planet. The result is a fast- paced narrative brimming with vivid characters. The play’s premise: what happens when a grown-up crash-lands on a planet inhabited solely by children? Factor in that said adult is Gleesome Goodday, Make-Your-Dreams-Come-True Man and Travelling Salesman; the possibilities for mayhem are endless! After Goodday lands on the beautiful island, he captivates the children who live there with astounding miracles. Not only does he give them the power of flight – he also nails the sun to the sky above their island so that it will “always be day and always be bright”. All appears to be well until two of the island’s children get blown off course to the dark side of the planet. They soon realize that Goodday’s intentions may not be as pure as he claims...
Bubbling beneath Blue Planet’s surface is a profound global consciousness. Eschewing a moralistic tone, Magnason skillfully turns ecological concerns and ethical considerations into rich dialogue. The students of the Department of English Drama & Theatre Program’s Theatre Lab, Costuming, and Stage Scenery & Lighting Classes have worked hard to craft a production rich in honesty, aliveness, creativity and butterfly powder. So what are you waiting for? We invite you to crash-land on our Blue Planet. Traverse its surface, explore its depths, share in its magic and allow your children (or the child in you) to experience the power of theatre.
