She’s pink, and feisty, and ‘live’

Peppa Pig Live, a musical theatrical adaption of the awardwinning animated TV series, is on tour in South Africa and will be at The Playhouse Company in Durban from April 20 to 22, writes Robyn Cohen

PEPPA Pig Live – with puppets and costumed characters – has been touring in the UK, US, Australia and New Zealand for more than eight years and has been seen by more than a million people.

Chad Findlay, resident creative director for the South African tour, said: “This is Peppa’s first visit to South Africa and will be premiering a brand new adventure.

“Peppa Pig Live has become a phenomenon. There are four touring companies in the UK, US, Australia and South Africa. Asia is a ‘new major focus point’ due to the popularity of Peppa in China.”

Peppa is a 4-year-old childpig and her feistiness and independence has evidently struck a global chord with the small fry.

Phil Davies, producer of the TV series, said when the series was under development, he and his co-creators were shocked at the generally poor production values of children’s animation.

“The stories didn’t even seem to have a beginning, middle or end. A lot of it was incomprehensible. The girls were princesses or ballerinas.

“So we made Peppa a 4-year-old child and told the whole series from her perspective. She has a red dress because she has a fiery personality.

“Parents tell us Peppa is too cheeky – someone in the Australian parliament said she was peddling a warped feminist agenda. But if she was a boy, no one would be saying that.

“Why does a girl have to be an anodyne, sweet, pink thing? We’re lucky all of us came from stable homes. We remember how the world was when we were 4.

“Anything you could think of could be made into an episode

– the first was about jumping in muddy puddles.

“They all come from simple ideas. Her grandparents have a pet parrot called Polly; she goes on a boat trip; she has a pen pal.

“My daughter is an ice skater and we thought it would be fun to have Peppa go ice skating. I used to be a mad pilot, so aeroplanes turn up in episodes.”

Bringing Peppa to a live audience challenged the producers to make Peppa’s world “real” and provide a chance to interact with her rather than just watch her on a flat screen.

Findlay said: “Television is a passive medium. Peppa Pig

Live is an interactive, immersive show. This is theatre where every child is involved from the start – whether singing along, dancing or jumping up and down in muddy puddles.

“Our young audiences are being invited to step into the world of Peppa Pig and experience all the joy that brings.

“All our main stars are lifesized costumed characters – larger than life, true embodiments of the character. Peppa Pig laughs, dances and runs about on stage just like any little girl.

“After the show – some of the audience get to meet their heroine in person during a meet and greet.

“Every puppet and character is hand-made and goes through three different approval processes with the show’s creative team, who oversee a range of fabricators from around the world.

“They are predominantly crafted from ‘Muppet fleece’ – a special fabric used by professional puppet builders as a ‘skin’ for their finished characters. This allows for expressive movement and brings the characters to life, giving them their loveable feel.”