Kids

Licketyspit's Magic Spaghetti a lively theatrical experience

Enjoyable despite humour being fairly thin on the ground

By the end of Magic Spaghetti you’re left with an overwhelming desire to head for the kitchen and start creating. Or at least the adults in the audience will be – little ones will probably be content with just tucking into the results. In this…

Citizens Theatre and Scottish Opera present double bill of family opera

Opera for children explores tricks and tools to delay going to bed

Bedtime: bliss for adults, torture for kids – making it the ideal subject for a family opera. Written by Jehane Markham, with music by Orlando Gough, On the Rim of the World follows a family as they wind down at the end of the day, climb into bed and…

Ditto explores how 8-12 year-old children listen and respond to music

Children's music show promises moments of tension, emotional resonance and humour

DITTO Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, Thu 20–Sat 22 Jan What do you think about when you’re listening to music? Chances are a range of thoughts, emotions and memories flood your mind. Add to that the vivid imagination of younger listeners, and you’ve…

Pinocchio

Physical comedy and collaborative effort makes for excellent alternative to mainstream panto

The intimate nature of this seasonal production makes for a wholesome take on Carlo Collodi’s boy puppet tale. Seemingly one for the Santa-believing contingent of the population (I am rarely ever the tallest person in any room, but was definitely top…

Scottish Parliament building hosts exhibition exploring Jacobites' international legacy

Rare chance to see historic artefacts from University of Aberdeen

The Scottish Parliament building hosts an exhibition of historical pieces from the University of Aberdeen's Jacobite collections for the next month.

Rebels with a Cause

Jacobite-themed weekend of storytelling, live music, tours, exhibitions and a quiz

In the same month as we remember Guy Fawkes’ rather unwelcome trip to the Houses of Parliament, that building’s Scottish counterpart is hoping for some friendlier visitors. Held over the St Andrew’s weekend, Rebels with a Cause is a mix of storytelling…

Family weekend: Rebels with a Cause – The Jacobites and the Global Imagination

Traditional music, egg decorating and quiz among highlights of weekend of free children's events

Rebels with a Cause – The Jacobites and the Global Imagination Wednesday 27 October to Saturday 8 January (closed Sundays except Sunday 28 November and 24 - 28, 31 December and 1 - 3 January) Monday and Friday 10:00 - 16.00 (last entry 15:30)…

Infant Opera BabyO is 30 minutes of melody, rhythm and harmony

Scottish Opera’s latest project is aimed at babies aged just 6-18 months

INFANT OPERA BABYO You’re never too young to enjoy a six-part harmony. That’s the theory behind Scottish Opera’s latest project, BabyO. Performed by three operatic singers, a bass, soprano and mezzo soprano, the show is aimed at babies aged just…

The best Kids Hallowe'en events in Edinburgh and Glasgow

Sometimes, the scariest thing about giving your kids a Hallowe’en treat can be the price. So once you’ve exhausted your wallet buying witch costumes and ghoul masks, here are a few free events to take your spookily-dressed offspring to. The Family Scary…

The events from Scottish history that shaped the nation's character

Jacobites exhibition reveals source of sentimentality in Scottish psyche

Rebels with a Cause: The Jacobites and the Global Imagination exhibition reveals origin of Scottish character’s tendency for the romantic, mournful and sentimental.

Paperbelle kids show highlights power of imagination

Amazing things happen inside a child’s imagination – an old twig becomes a magic wand, a cardboard box a castle. And, as theatre director Heather Fulton discovered while working with nursery children, a small piece of paper can come alive with all kinds…

In The Night Garden - live in Glasgow

Toddlers TV favourite come to Glasgow Green

Walking past Glasgow Green over the next few weeks, you’d be forgiven for thinking that aliens had landed. In fact, it’s a far more innocuous gang of visitors from CBeebies’ land of charm, the Night Garden. Taking place in a stunning, purpose-built…

Magic Spaghetti

With a passing nod to The Magic Porridge Pot, this lively show from children’s theatre company Licketyspit manages to entertain and inspire healthy eating in one go. Strega Nona has a magical pot that produces endless spaghetti coated in tantalising…

Lauren St John at the Book Festival

Writing for a more honest and passionate reader

Remember those series of books you would read as a child? Remember how, when you discovered a new one, you’d just have to devour it as quickly as possible, gobbling up boarding-school tales of lacrosse and midnight feasts and adventure after adventure…

Dr Bunhead is Volcano Head

Wouldn’t it be great if all science teachers were like Dr Bunhead? Surely there’s room on the new curriculum for setting fire to your head, blowing up vegetables and creating anti-gravity poo. No? Oh well, you’ll have to make do with a brief date with…

Arabian Nights

Tales from old Baghdad

As soon as you walk into the Storytelling Centre, you’re met with the exotic aroma of burning incense. That, and a stage filled with promise – middle eastern and otherwise. Andy Lawrence and his company, Theatre of Widdershins, have built up a…

Wee Willie Gray

Magical adventure for Burns’ wee boy

Robert Burns wasn’t known for writing children’s verse – and even when he did, he was economical with his words. So Foolish Notion (aka Andy Cannon and Wendy Weatherby) had their work cut out turning his six line song Wee Willie Gray into an hour-long…

Potted Panto brings CBBC's Dan and Jeff to Fringe

Aladdin, Mother Goose and Cinderella - in one show

You’ve seen Aladdin, Mother Goose and Cinderella – now see all three, plus four more, squeezed into 70 minutes of dynamic mayhem. Performed by CBBC’s Dan and Jeff, the duo who brought us Potted Potter and Potted Pirates, this fast-paced romp will have…

5 Questions - Patrick Monahan

Comedian Patrick Monahan (winner of the longest kids show title award) takes a break from Stories and Tales for Kids Who Can Run Faster Than Snails to answer our 5 Questions.

Sticks, Stones, Broken Bones

Your plastic friends

There’s something delightfully primal about a shadow-and-light show; it makes us all into children again. This piece, a light comic novelty of the kind only seen in fringe festivals, is an exemplar of its kind, with the delicate touch required for a…

White

Charmingly surreal show for toddlers

Catering to the attention spans of fidgety toddlers while also offering value for money, this 35-minute show actually begins in the garden outside – where there’s a host of white objects to talk and think about – and ends with time for chat and play…

The White Dalmatian

Fairytale musical with a twist

Little Claire gets a special new stuffed toy for her birthday, Dalmatian Polkadot, but one of her old toys, Witch, is jealous. She magics Dalmatian’s spots to Fairyland and all the other toys have to journey there to retrieve them. In this musical…

Belt Up's Octavia

Confused quest in a war zone

Princess Octavia is on a quest to restore order to her war-torn land. In a tale inspired by Cornish folklore, she is guided on her way by sprites, witches and hobgoblins. Belt Up have won many fans (and an Edinburgh International Festival award) for…

The Railway Children

A classic revisited

Rather than cater to contemporary children’s experiences, Sell a Door Theatre Company has gone for a faithful rendition of a classic. E. Nesbit’s well-loved tale of Mrs Waterbury and her three children, who are forced to move to the country while her…

Alice in Wonderland

Fast-paced adaptation goes full throttle

This entertaining version of Lewis Carroll’s classic is an inventive blend of physical theatre, music, puppetry and pantomime. The three young Derby-based performers who juggle all the roles between them establish a strong and immediate rapport with…