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of your own to take home. FREE Go Wild in Our City Sat 15 & Sun 16 Mar, 1.30–4pm. Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum, Argyle Street, 276 9599. Wildlife exploration in and around the city, getting up close to minibeasts. FREE Beautiful Botany Sun 16 Mar, 1–3pm. Glasgow Museums Resource Centre, 200 Woodhead Road, 276 9300. Find out how people coloured their clothes before dyes were invented.
Books & Storytelling Tall Tales Saturdays until 21 May, 10am. £6. Tron Theatre, 63 Trongate, 552 4267. Interactive storytelling with movement, mime and props. Ages 3–5. Tiny Tales Wednesdays until 19 Mar, 10am. £6. Tron Theatre, 63 Trongate, 552 4267. Different tales every time, followed by a creative play session. Ages 6 months to 2 years. Family Storytime Sat 22 & Sun 23 Feb, 10.30am & 12.30pm. £5 (family £15; under 2s free). Scottish Youth Theatre, The Old Sheriff Court, 105 Brunswick Street, 552 3988. Today’s story: ‘The Bundle of Sticks’. Family Storytime Sun 23 Feb, 11am & 1pm. £5 (family £15). Eastwood Park Theatre, Eastwood Park, Rouken Glen Road, Giffnock, 577 4970. Today’s story: ‘The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse’. FREE A Month with Rabbie Sat 22 Feb, 1–3pm. People’s Palace & Winter Gardens, Glasgow Green, 276 0788. Celebrate the life and work of Scotland’s national poet, Robert Burns. FREE Saturdays at St Mungo Saturdays 22 Feb & 8 Mar, 1–3pm. St Mungo Museum of Religious Life and Art, 2 Castle Street, 276 1625. Arts, crafts, storytelling and games. FREE Bookbug Session Mondays 24 Feb, 3, 10 & 17 Mar, 11am. Eastwood Park Theatre, Rouken Glen Road, Giffnock, 577 4970. Rhymes, stories and songs. Suitable for under threes.
✽Wee Write! Wed 5–Tue 11 Mar, times vary. Prices vary.
Mitchell Library, North Street, 287 2999. Inaugurated last year as part of Aye Write!, this year the children’s programme morphs into its own festival. See preview, left. Family Storytime Sat 8 & Sun 9 Mar, 10.30am & 12.30pm. £5 (family £15; under 2s free). Scottish Youth Theatre, The Old Sheriff Court, 105 Brunswick Street, 552 3988. Today’s story: ‘The Lion and the Mouse’. Family Storytime Sat 8 Mar, 11am & 1pm. £5 (family £15). Eastwood Park Theatre, Eastwood Park, Rouken Glen Road, Giffnock, 577 4970. Today’s story: ‘The Boy who Cried Wolf’.
Music FREE Hina Matsuri Japanese Spring Festival Sat 1 Mar, 1–3.30pm. Kibble Palace, Glasgow Botanic Gardens, 730 Great Western Road, 334 2422. Celebration of Japanese culture with taiko drumming, origami, Asian sweets and Japanese fashion. The Singing Kettle: Fantastic Funfair Sun 9 Mar, noon & 3.30pm. £13 (family £48). SECC, Finnieston Quay, 0844 395 4000. Thrills and spills as the Kettle gang take on the helter skelters and merry-go-rounds of the funfair. Theatre & Dance The Three Little Pigs Sun 23 Feb, 1pm. £5.75 (adults £5.95). Scottish Mask and Puppet Centre, 8–10 Balcarres Avenue, Kelvindale, 339 6185. Tales told via expressive and imaginative puppetry. Jawtanic! Mon 24 Feb, 7pm. Pay what you want. Platform, The Bridge, 1000 Westerhouse Road, Easterhouse, 276 9696. Creation Station presents an original performance about a great white shark taking on the legendary Titanic. The Singing Ringing Tree Sat 1 Mar, 2pm. £5.75 (adults £5.95). Scottish Mask and Puppet Centre, 8–10 Balcarres Avenue, Kelvindale, 339 6185. Glove-
KIDDY CLUBBING POP LOCK-IN Electric Circus, Edinburgh, Fri 21 Feb; The Glasshouse, Glasgow, Sun 2 Mar
When afternoon clubbing event Baby Loves Disco first got off the ground, it was as much for the grown-ups as the offspring sitting on their hips; a chance to hang out with friends in a nightclub environment, have a dance and recapture days gone by (albeit with one major difference). But, as all parents know, children get older, bigger, and less keen to have mum and dad by their side. Which is why organiser Lesley Woodall started a brand new event, Pop Lock-In, aimed at the more mature age group of 4- to 11-year-olds. ‘We were finding that older children coming to Baby Loves Disco were outgrowing it before they were ready,’ she explains. ‘So there seemed to be a need for something catering for kids who still want to be in that family unit, but have enough independence to dance with their friends and try out activities, without being quite so attached to mum’s leg.’
To that end, the music is up-to-the-minute chart pop (as opposed to parent-oriented nostalgic floor-fillers), and as well as the lure of the dancefloor – complete with streetdance instructor – Woodall and her team provide a range of fun pursuits dotted around the venues. ‘We’ve got karaoke, jewellery making, mini air hockey and table football, nail painting and glitter tattoos,’ she says. ‘And in Edinburgh, we have DJ and Guitar Hero, which the kids love.’
Best of all, young ones get to ventur e out on their own, but still under the watchful eye of proud parents. ‘There’s very little out there for this age group,’ says Woodall. ‘There are plenty of things where parents drop children off to do a class, but this is a bit fresher and something you can still share as a family. The children feel cool to be in a nightclub, which is different to going into a disco in a community centre – and I think the parents like it for the same reasons.’ (Kelly Apter)
puppet tale of a prince and his quest for the magic tree. Ages 3+. The Adventures of Robin Hood Sat 1 Mar, 7.30pm. £13 (£11; students £9). Eastwood Park Theatre, Rouken Glen Road, Giffnock, 577 4970. Visible Fictions give their take on the classic tale. Baby Loves Disco Sun 2 Mar, 1–3pm. £8 (non walking babies free). Mansion House, The Glasshouse, 20 Glassford Street, 553 4888. An ‘At The Movies’ theme for this groovetastic event for ages 0–7. The Boy Who Cried Wolf Sat 8 Mar, 11am & 1pm. £5 (family £15). Eastwood Park Theatre, Rouken Glen Road, Giffnock, 577 4970. Children’s play based on the age-old warning against telling fibs. Albert’s Amazing Acrobatic Flea Circus Sat 8 Mar, 2pm. £5.75 (adults £5.95). Scottish Mask and Puppet Centre, 8–10 Balcarres Avenue, Kelvindale, 339 6185. Grab your magnifying glass for the incredible flea circus! Kidnapped Tue 11 Mar, 1pm & 7pm. £5 (family £15). Eastwood Park Theatre, Rouken Glen Road, Giffnock, 577 4970. The dramatic tale of Davie Balfour who survives a shipwreck and escapes to the Highlands. That’s The Way To Do It Sat 15 Mar, 2pm. £5.75 (adults £5.95). Scottish Mask and Puppet Centre, 8–10 Balcarres Avenue, Kelvindale, 339 6185. Mr Punch is up to mischief again in this mix of
puppetry and magic. Ages 3+. Part of Glasgow International Comedy Festival.
✽The Secret Life of Suitcases Sat 15 Mar, 2pm. £3.50–£8.
Platform, The Bridge, 1000 Westerhouse Road, Easterhouse, 276 9696. Larry has to go on a mission when one of the secrets from someone’s suitcase goes missing. Ages 5+. Pinocchio Sun 16 Mar, 2pm. £5.75 (adults £5.95). Scottish Mask and Puppet Centre, 8–10 Balcarres Avenue, Kelvindale, 339 6185. Puppet version of the classic story about the little boy who cannot lie. Glasgow International Comedy Festival.
EDINBURGH Activities & Fun Animal Kingdom Wed 19 Feb–Sun 23 Feb, 9.30am–3.30pm. Included in admission. Palace of Holyroodhouse, Royal Mile, 556 5100. Explore the Palace, finding all the animals that adorn the building. FREE Drawing with Thread Thu 20 Feb, 2–3pm & 3.30–4.30pm. Scottish National Portrait Gallery, 1 Queen Street, 624 6200. A workshop in making things with threads and cloth. Ages 7+. The Family Gallery Every Friday, 10–11am. £4 per child. Summerhall, 1 Summerhall, 0845 874 3001. Family art workshops for under 5s and their parents.
KIDS
✽Pop Lock-In Fri 21 Feb, 2–4pm. £8 per child; Gold Ticket £10.50
(includes party bag on arrival); accompanying parents free. Electric Circus, 36–39 Market Street, 226 4224. An afternoon disco for ages 4–11. See preview, left. FREE City Sights Sat 22 Feb, 10am– noon. City Art Centre, 2 Market Street, 529 3993. Classes for families and kids to explore art together. Ages 7+. Create Fridays until 4 Apr, 2.15–4pm. £tbc. WHALE Arts, 30 Westburn Grove, 458 3267. Drop in arts and crafts for ages 8–14.
Books & Storytelling The Tattoo Fox Fri 21 Feb, 10.30–11.30am. £5 (free). Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43–45 High Street, 556 9579. Everybody knows the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, but not everybody knows its secret fan – a fox that lives on the castle esplanade. For ages 6–10. Tiny Tales Tue 4 Mar, 10–10.40am & 11.30am–12.10pm. £5. Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43–45 High Street, 556 9579. Stories of ‘hearts, wings and fluttery things’ for ages 1–3.
Theatre & Dance Baby Loves Disco Sun 23 Feb, 1–3pm. £8 (non walking babies free). Electric Circus, 36–39 Market Street, 226 4224. See Glasgow, Theatre & Dance, but with a ‘Teddy Bears’ Sleepover’ theme. FREE Adventures from the Odyssey Sat 1 Mar, 10.30–11.15am. Free, but ticketed. Blackwell’s, 53–59 South Bridge, 622 8222. Carolyne and her dog Argos travel back in time to visit the first ever Olympic Games. A play from Puppet Anima.
✽Innocence Sat 1 Mar, noon. £10 (family £8 each). Traverse Theatre,
Cambridge Street, 228 1404. Scottish Dance Theatre invites 0–7 year olds (and their adults) to explore the world of William Blake’s imagination.
OUTSIDE THE CITIES Activities & Fun Pirate and Princess Week Wed 19– Fri 21 Feb, 10am–4pm. Sat 22 & Sun 23 Feb, 10am–6pm. Included in admission. Deep Sea World, North Queensferry, 01383 411880. Storytelling sessions, tug-o-war competitions and loads of swashbuckling fun. Kids in costume get in free.
Theatre & Dance YDance Routes: Destinations Sat 22 & Sun 23 Feb, 7.30pm. £6 (£4). macrobert, University of Stirling, Stirling, 01786 466666. Twenty four dance groups from across Scotland stage a varied evening of dance. The Adventures of Robin Hood Fri 14 Mar, 7pm. £6.75 (family £25). The Brunton, Ladywell Way, Musselburgh, 665 2240. See Glasgow, Theatre & Dance.
SciEnce at SciEnce at the HeaRt the HeaRt Rt of... fun of... fun 20 Feb–20 Mar 2014 THE LIST 63