The Children's Midsummer Night's Dream

This opens with a bunch of school kids watching life-size puppets: Egeus is warning daughter Hermia of her fate if she disobeys him and refuses to marry Demetrius. Some spellbound, the children turn into characters with whom they identify, playing out the Dream in an enchanted wood. The cast (with no previous acting experience) conjure up humour and emotion, adding a minx-like quality to the fairies and woodland echoes. A total of 350 children from a range of London schools were involved in this inspired project - some from a school subsequently reported to be 'failed'.