Virginias Diary
Storyplay City Launch
Licketyspit wants to spark a children’s rights-based play revolution! The Glasgow Community and National Lottery Community Funds have let us make a start. This is just the beginning! Everyone can join. There is a big imaginary play train going round Glasgow and everyone can jump on board! What is Storyplay City? Everyone, of all ages, loves to play! We need to play! Play is at the essence of being human. When we play imaginatively with other people there are no limits and [...]
Glasgow, one year on: a Storyplay explosion!
It’s been a year since we moved the Licketyspit office to Glasgow - and what a year it’s been. None of us could have predicted the tumultuous events that would affect everything and everyone; for the past six months, like all other arts organisations, the activities and goals we set out have been forced to shift and morph to fit our new reality. So, we were delighted when one of the parents in our Children & Families Network happily remarked that she’d noticed “an explosion” in Licketyspit activity [...]
UNCRC Incorporation Scotland Bill
Wednesday 9th September, 2020 Incorporating the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child into Scottish law is a big step towards ensuring every child in Scotland grows up happy, healthy and safe. This “rights revolution” means our government is committed to building a society where children are seen, heard, included and valued as equal human beings with their own views, thoughts, feelings and ideas. It means children’s experiences and perspectives must be considered equally alongside those of adults, not as secondary or irrelevant. These are big [...]
Ensuring access to digital tablets for families in need
In response to the Covid-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdown, Licketyspit worked quickly to respond to the needs of families in our Children & Families Network and provide creative, joyful activities that would help families feel less isolated, inspire children to play and imagine at home, and connect people up with financial and food support during this difficult time. This included making videos for children explaining coronavirus and the lockdown, and demonstrating our Playcard games and songs, for families to play along to. We also adapted our intergenerational [...]
IPAY Talk in Philadelphia
Licketyspit goes to Philadelphia! On 15th January 2019, Virginia was part of a Scottish Children’s Theatre delegation to the IPAY International Showcase. International Performing Arts for Youth (IPAY) brings together specialist children’s theatre companies and venues from around the world. Licketyspit was supported by Imaginate and Creative Scotland to participate in the conference and explore possibilities for touring our shows in America. Our featured show was Hare & Tortoise, Virginia Radcliffe and Deborah Arnott’s fantastic adaptation of Aesop’s fable. Featuring the Bun Brothers, Mrs Doodah and the Spooky Wood! With [...]
Learning to communicate with words empowers children!
I spent the early years of Licketyspit writing, directing and producing big, complex shows for children and families (and acting in them too!). Licketyspit is rooted in theatre, and we continue to produce full scale productions, like Molly Whuppie at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2016. We want to fire children’s imaginations and we can see that theatre is a fantastic tool to do this. But more than this, an experience of theatre can give an early years child a great store of material, a multi-layered experience they [...]
