voi Ceson different levels and in different ways. We also engage with young people through
our visual aesthetic. different visual narratives unfold alongside adventurous and
challenging texts. We fuse traditional technologies (e.g. puppetry and object theatre)
with new technologies, such as digital media. The work is on both an intimate and on
an epic scale. We explore the poetic and the vernacular together.
The goal here is to make a highly layered performance which includes ‘awe and
wonderment’ and also enables the young people to form opinions through their emo-
tions (ultimately developing their emotional intelligence), and to access complex sci-
entific ideas through the use of different learning styles (see gardner 1983) supported
by multiple performative forms such as: (i) the interactivity of (abstract) dance narra-
tive with (linear) verbal narrative text; (ii) the fusion of english (poetic) narrative and
traditional south asian rhythmical structures (Konokol); (iii) the congruency between
Contemporary dance with traditional Baratnathyam indian dance; and (iv) the rela-
tionship between the digital space and the crafted world of the object.
our research investigates how successful we have been in our aims. it is both
reflection in action and reflection on action (schön 1991). We use reflection in action
as we involve our partners, who include children, teachers, scientists, other professional
artists and also university students and lecturers in theatre design and performance. The
children are especially significant in the process of developing the work. We work with
them to discover what is of interest to them, what is of value in their world experience.
We do this through sustained relationships with particular groups over many months.
For example, the themes, characters, issues and imagery of the plays come directly from
the interdisciplinary arts workshops we run with children in school, whatever their age
and whatever the subject matter. in addition to our own perceptions as artists, we are
keen to understand the audiences’ heads and hearts through the creative work we do
with them.
We use reflection on action by systematically evaluating our work, focusing especially
on the arts components that were specifically designed in. our research question is:
how far does the fusion of performance languages, and the active participation of the
children within the performance, enable scientific understanding of the cosmos?
To answer the question, we focus on the following aspects of our work:
- the active participation of children within the performance, maximizing their
engagement with scientific questions and understanding; - the creation of spectacle to engender awe and wonderment, and to produce
memorable experiences thus motivating learning; - the fusion of performance languages, enabling greater access to ideas through
engagement with different learning styles; - the opportunity for empathy with human experience, thus supporting children
to develop their emotional intelligence.
We evaluate these different aspects in a range of ways. We assess their participa-
tion as demonstrated by the children’s sitting and watching, responding to questions
and asking questions. We gauge their scientific understanding by exploring changes in
children’s concepts of many (planets), distance (planets, stars), inquiry, etc. We try to
find out what fascinated them: what moments they remember. We consider how best