CHILDREN & YOUNG ADULTS
Amadan Ensemble was established to benefit our audience by producing high quality devised theatre specialising in Clown and Bouffon throughout Northern Ireland and beyond. Our work is intended to be bold,exciting, thought-provoking and entertaining for audiences of all ages including children and young adults. Our high quality productions and workshops aimed at young audiences are accessible and can be specialised to specific audiences needs and accessibility requirements. Amadan Ensemble often produces non-verbal projects, creating a visual collective experience for our audience with space to add their own narrative and often their own voice. We Believe it's incumbent to create work enabling a young audience to think, question and connect to stories.
Amadan is focusing on building relationships with a number of Special Schools as we recognise that they may not be able to access traditional theatre venues. Amadan Ensemble’s vision is to facilitate and encourage play, resilience and confidence within our audience. Examples of our work centred on children and young people are ‘Mr. Mess’, Special Schools Tour of Geppetto, HarbourKIDS Toronto, a regional ROI & NI tour and ‘Pink & Blue’.
Selected Amadan Ensemble Children's Projects Below:
Mr. Mess
The Show
Mr. Mess returns to the stage determined to bring laughter back to audiences. Using mime, slapstick and
physical comedy Mr. Mess is trying to go about his day but accidents are never far away. With a smile on his face & a giggle in his heart, Mr. Mess fumbles his way through the simplest of tasks. He is lanky, he's foolish & there's more to his briefcase than meets the eye!
Mr. Mess is a fun family show suitable for all ages. There’s no dialogue, so even the littlest audience members will be able to follow & they may even get to join in! Expect lots of fun & balloon popping in this charming show. We created this show specifically to work as a piece of stand-alone theatre for various spaces/events. It is adaptable to suit a theatre, fun day or festival, either indoor or outdoor.
Testimonials
Mr Mess at Clifton Special School, Bangor:
Thank you so much for your performances and all the interaction with kids before and afterwards. You made
our day. Your performances were spot on for our pupils and I know they thoroughly enjoyed it all. Our whole day was full of fun and happiness and you were a central part of that.
Thank you so much.
-Maggie Sinnamon – Teacher
Mr Mess at Clotworthy House:
Amadan was a pleasure to work with, professional and accommodating at all times and flexible in terms of
performance times and set up. The show, Mr Mess, is a delight and played to packed out audiences. Children and adults alike were enthralled and entertained and feedback from the event was overwhelmingly positive.
I was so impressed with the show that I booked Amadan to return to Antrim in October 2016 in The Old
Courthouse Theatre. I would highly recommend this innovative company.
-Cathy Brown – former Arts & Heritage Officer, Antrim & Newtownabbey Borough Council
Mr. Mess at the MAC:
As resident HATCH artists at the MAC, we know first-hand that Amadan are one of the most original and
creative companies working in Northern Ireland at the moment. In Mr. Mess they have created a fantastically fun, interactive performance which appeals to all ages. We were delighted to present Mr. Mess to our audience in June 2016 to packed houses and the response from all, from tiny children to their parents was universally brilliant. We hope to see Mr. Mess appearing again soon!
-Stephen Coulter - Programming Officer
Mr. Mess at Giant Adventures:
We engaged Amadan and from the initial phone call they were eager to work in partnership with us to provide memorable experiences for the children and families. They were extremely adept at reading the audience;
drawing in crowds and modifying, "Mr Mess" accordingly. They were a hugely popular draw, with some
children returning on day two of the festivals, asking where Mr Mess was. This is a fantastic, adaptable
show. Jude is a compelling performer, who pitches this piece perfectly for a diverse audience. I would have no qualms about working with Amadan again - they delivered exactly what they said they would, were always available by phone or email, and were a firm favourite at our events throughout the district.
-Aisleain McGill – Events Officer Newry, Mourne & Down District Council
Play & Confidence Workshop
Grand Opera House Belfast
November 2022
Amadan, Ireland’s premier devised theatre company specialising in the artistry and mastery of Clown and Buffoon, have created a bespoke masterclass for the Grand Opera House, suitable for artists and theatre students alike.
Using a range of games and exercises the class will focus on building a sense of play, confidence and resilience within the performer. Clown is rooted in optimism and joy; they love the audience and want to play with them no matter what goes wrong. This workshop will help participants master these qualities whilst having a lot of laughs.
Having trained at Ecole Jacques Lecoq, with Clown master Philippe Gaulier and the David Glass Ensemble, Gemma Mae Halligan & Jude Quinn bring their expertise in the art of Clown & devised theatre to this three-hour workshop.
Come prepared to move, laugh and discover your inner Clown. Participants should wear clothes they are able to move in.
Red noses provided!
Pink & Blue
The Show
Is it true that girls and boys are so different? Can girls only wear pink? Do boys only like blue?
With silliness and fun, this show sees two clowns find out if we can all be who we want to be and accept others as who they are too!
Pink & Blue is a collaboration between Amadan Ensemble and performer Jennifer Jane Jordan with music composed by composer Neil Foster.
Suitable for 4yrs+ | 40mins duration
GRASSHOPPERS FESTIVAL
Balbriggan -March 2023
🤡We had a very exciting weekend of clowning around🤡
Creative Director Gemma Mae visited the Grasshoppers Festival in Balbriggan to do two clown workshops for these little clowns at St. Teresa's Primary School. The kids were amazing! A big thanks to Cliodhna and the team for inviting us down.
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Here is a link to this great festival providing high quality arts experiences for audiences aged 0-6 and their carers in Balbriggan-