Room on the Broom and The Highway Rat – POSTPONED

Victoria Hall, Leeds Town Hall, The Headrow, Leeds LS1 3AD

Saturday 11 April from 2:30pm and 4:15pm

Event Information

WHSmith will be book seller for both shows, selling copies of Room on the Broom and The Highway Rat.

Orchestra of Opera North Terry Davies – conductor

Terry Davies conducts René Aubry’s inspired scores for this wonderful double bill, Room on the Broom and The Highway Rat, based on the much-loved children’s books written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler.

A kind witch invites assorted animals to join her on her broom in Room on the Broom, much to the frustration of her cat. The witch’s companions ultimately save her from a fearsome dragon, and in gratitude, she rewards them with a magnificent new broom, which has room for everyone. And the magic doesn’t stop there. The Highway Rat tells the tale of a ravenous rat who craves buns,biscuits and all sweet things. Tearing along the highway, he searches for sugary treats to steal, until his sweet tooth leads him to a sticky end...

The 2.30pm show is a relaxed performance.

Relaxed Performance (RP): Relaxed Performances allow members of the audience to move around freely, leave or enter the auditorium as needed, lights never go completely dark and sound effects are softened. These performances are open to all and are designed to welcome people with an autistic spectrum condition, learning disability, dementia or sensory and communication disorder.

Description

Room on the Broom: How the cat purred and how the witch grinned, As they sat on their broomstick and flew through the wind. A very funny story of quick wits and friendship, Room on the Broom is another smash hit from the unparalleled picture book partnership of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, creators of The Gruffalo. The Highway Rat 'Give me your buns and your biscuits! Give me your chocolate eclairs! For I am the Rat of the highway, and the Rat Thief never shares!' Life is not safe for the other animals, as the villainous Highway Rat gallops along the highway, stealing their food. Clover from a rabbit; nuts from a squirrel - he even steals his own horse's hay. Will he finally meet his comeuppance, in the form of a cunning duck? A fabulous, rollicking rhyme, in the style of the famous Alfred Noyes poem, 'The Highwayman', from the authors of 'The Gruffalo' and 'Zog'. The witch and her cat fly happily over forests, rivers and mountains on their broomstick until a stormy wind blows away the witch's hat, bow and wand. Luckily, they are retrieved by a dog, a bird and a frog, who are all keen for a ride on the broom. It's a case of the more, the merrier, but the broomstick isn't used to such a heavy load and it's not long before . . . SNAP! It breaks in two! And with a greedy dragon looking for a snack, the witch's animal pals better think fast.