Walk the plank and tread the boards

Helen Barratt and Jonathan Martin in The Man Whose Mother Was A Pirate. Picture / Martin Sykes

If the thought of keeping the kids amused these schools holidays, especially if it's cold and wet, leaves you feeling like walking the plank, fear not: take them to the theatre.

Some parents may be wary of taking the little darlings to a theatre, fearing that audiences must sit quietly, only daring to move when they clap politely at the end.

While it's true that at "grown-up" shows loud conversations and excessive fidgeting might be frowned upon, productions for children are usually boisterous with plenty of interaction for energetic youngsters.

These school holidays, on the North Shore and in West Auckland, there are two shows specifically for kids. The first is an adaptation of Margaret Mahy's The Man Whose Mother Was a Pirate by Tim Bray Productions.

It tells the story of Sam, an ordinary man who wears a suit and works in an office. But his mother is anything but ordinary. She's a pirate who longs to see the sea again and convinces her son to join her on an ocean adventure.

Assistant producer Maree Folwell says the audience will be called upon to play various parts, including the ocean, and are encouraged to dress up as pirates.

Across town, Glen Eden's Playhouse Theatre stages Piers Chater Robinson's Peter Pan: The Musical with a cast including adults as well as children as young as 8.

Directed by speech and drama tutor Dorothy Chisholm, kids can sing along, boo and hiss at Captain Hook and ponder just what type of creature is Tinkerbell. In short, the kids are expected to make a lot of noise at both productions and to have fun.

Tim Bray Productions has been producing children's shows for 13 years and has used a number of ways to capture the kids' imaginations. Last year, it staged Wind in the Willows outdoors with audiences following Ratty and Mole on their adventures.

This year, says Folwell, there is a big emphasis in schools on Margaret Mahy's 70th birthday celebrations so The Man Whose Mother Was a Pirate may be a story youngsters already know.

Sheryl Watson, Playhouse Theatre manager, is a passionate theatre practitioner who believes seeing live shows can be life-changing for youngsters. "Introduce children to theatre as young as possible," she says. "I took my kids to see Carmen when they were 5. They might not have understood the story but they loved the spectacle of it."

Watson says being involved with drama groups can help children to develop talents they may have - on-stage or in the technical realm - and teach them the value of teamwork. "I'm convinced there would be far less graffiti if some of those kids had a more constructive outlet."

To this end, she has put up a sign outside the Playhouse inviting vandals to stop defacing the building and paint sets instead.

Actor Jacque Drew, soon to appear in Twelfth Night, was just 3 years old when her drama teacher mother took her to see Julius Caesar.

"I was spellbound," she says. "From that moment on, I knew what I wanted to be for the rest of my life.

What: The Man Whose Mother Was a Pirate
Where and when: PumpHouse Theatre, Takapuna, July 5-15, 10.30am & 12.30pm daily (no shows Mon).

What: Peter Pan: The Musical
Where and when: Playhouse Theatre, Glen Eden, July 6-15 (July 12, 13, 14 - 10am; July 8, 9, 11, 15 - 2pm; July 6-8, 11-15, 7.30pm)