A magical tale of a blooming unlikely friendship.
Hidden amongst the concrete high-rises and the redbrick buildings is something pretty unexpected. A place bursting with colour where flowers, fruits and vegetables come to life in every corner growing up walls, twisting around drainpipes and planted in unusual objects.
A curious child discovers this hidden garden and meets the man who has created his own little paradise to brighten up the grey and to feed those for whom hunger is never far away.
Join this unlikely duo and be part of the bond that sprouts when they go on an enchanting adventure together.
Created for children aged 5+ and their grown-ups, this performance celebrated how gardening brings communities together and breathes new life into abandoned places. It gently highlighted food poverty, recycling, activism, and the power of reclaiming space.
The Hidden Garden toured in summer and autumn 2024 to:
Saturday 3 August – Mind the Gap, Bradford
Saturday 21 September – Z-Arts, Manchester
Wednesday 25 September – Mind the Gap, Bradford
Saturday 28 & Sunday 29 September – Waterside Arts, Trafford
Thursday 10 October – Arts Centre Washington, Tyne & Wear
Wednesday 23 October – Spot on Lancashire: Mellor Village Hall, Blackburn
Thursday 24 October – Spot on Lancashire: Haslingden Library, Rossendale
Friday 25 October – Spot on Lancashire: Downtown Foodbank, Burnley
Saturday 26 October – Cheshire Rural Touring: Theatre Porto, Ellesmere Port
Sunday 27 October – Cheshire Rural Touring: Hoole Community Centre, Chester
Tuesday 29 October – Derby Theatre: Normanton Library, Derby
Friday 1 November – Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough
Saturday 2 & Monday 4 November – Leeds Playhouse
“…we’d just like to say how much both the teachers and children enjoyed the performance. The children were buzzing with excitement when leaving the space and spoke about their experience for the entire walk back to school. They spoke enthusiastically about growing their own gardens and if we can plant their peas in our school garden. They also spoke about the themes of friendship and kindness that radiated throughout the performance. So, a huge thank you for creating such a memorable experience for our Year 4 children.” – Assistant Headteacher at Green Lane Primary School
“Absolutely wonderful! Warm welcome, good storyline that gave the opportunity to discuss not jumping to conclusions or stereotyping people and the gift of friendship. The little packet of seeds added to the enjoyment for my grandson. The props were creative and the actors excellent.” – Audience member
“Such a brilliant price for a high quality performance! My 5 year old and I loved it!” – Audience member
“I love my pea’s. I’m going to plant them when I get home” – Audience member
“I love the pigeon” – Audience member
“Really cool” – Audience member
“So lovely that it was just round the corner” – Audience member
We began R&D for The Hidden Garden (first working title ‘Guerilla Gardening’) in July 2021 with workshops in schools. We worked with Trees for Cities through their Edible Playgrounds initiative in the first phase of development and then with charity Grow to School to run the Community Growing Day at the end of the second R&D. The workshops helped us to understand more about what children know and feel about gardening, growing, and the themes we were exploring. They were co-authors in our story, helping us build a tale based on their ideas and experiences.
The production design combined urban living and nature with a garden created on waste land at the centre of the story. The audience laughed and imagined, and at the same time were inspired about how they can help the environment and make sure everyone they live near has enough to eat.
The Hidden Garden toured to small-scale studios and non-traditional spaces in summer and autumn 2024.
Watch the film from the R&D planting, performance and story sharing day at Co-op Academy Princeville in Bradford in June 2022
Watch the film from our R&D in July 2021
Children and young people lead us in exploring important stories with artists, families, schools, and students. Here are their stories:
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