This summer, one of Australia’s most beloved family traditions will perform their 30th consecutive season in the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne. Multi generational audiences are invited to celebrate this summer’s very special season when The Wind in the Willows transforms Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Gardens from 23 December 2016 to 28 January 2017.
Glenn Elston’s The Wind in the Willows has played to generations of audiences across Australia, and now many thousand passionate fans in the UK in a sell out season in London’s Kew Gardens! The animals of the riverbank are still ‘messing, simply messing about in boats!’
“It’s amazing to think we have been doing this for 30 years,” says Elston. “Just like our audiences, my family has grown up with the show. My son Otis played Portly as a child, and grew up stage-managing and performing various parts, getting to know it intimately.”
“Now he’s proven himself as a director, and will be directing our anniversary season. We couldn’t be more humbled by Australia’s love for our little production – without them we wouldn’t still be here.”
The Wind in the Willows has become a tradition for thousands of Melbourne families, with many who saw the show as children now bringing their own little ones, while some families of four generations have been seeing the show regularly since it was first performed.
Join Ratty, Mole, Badger, Otter, Portly and, of course, Mr Toad, as they return this summer, bringing to life Kenneth Grahame’s immortal story of life on the riverbank. The critically acclaimed outdoor theatre production delivers music, songs and laughs. There is fun for young and old as the Head Chief Rabbit transforms audiences into rabbits with a waggle of the ears and a wiggle of the nose.
Melbourne’s best-loved affordable family entertainment, The Wind in the Willows asks you to pack a picnic, pack the kids and join in the fun! The young ‘rabbits’ are encouraged to get involved in the action, and are given every opportunity to scream out loud, sing along and become part of the adventure. With laughs and surprises for children and adults, this is interactive theatre at its best.
The Wind in the Willows has become a national treasure, playing to delighted audiences in the gardens of Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth. This summer Sydney also celebrates an anniversary, with the riverbank creatures performing their 15th summer season from 6 January 2017.
Every summer Melbourne’s iconic Royal Botanic Gardens are a hive of activity with thousands Melburnians, Victorians, national and international visitors enjoying Glenn Elston’s Shakespeare Under the Stars and family favourite The Wind in the Willows. This summer Elston’s interactive show for preschoolers, Tinkerbell and the Dream Fairies, also returns to the Royal Botanic Gardens, following rave reviews for their debut season last year.
The Wind in the Willows
Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne – Enter via Gate F on Birdwood Avenue
Season: 23 December 2016 – 28 January 2017
Information and Bookings: www.shakespeareaustralia.com.au
Image: The Wind in the Willows – courtesy of the Australian Shakespeare Company