A couple of weeks ago Aria and I went to see In The Night Garden Live. In the Night Garden Live is touring around the country just now and if you have a fan I’d recommend checking it out. Aria is a huge fan of in The Night Garden and I recorded a video of her before she went in which I hope you will like, she was very chatty and so excited.
In The Night Garden is in a purpose built Snowdome, it is incredible to see on the drive up, it’s like the big marshmallow man from Ghost Busters, ok I’m showing my age, but you’ll hopefully know who I mean. The Glasgow stop of the tour was at Queen’s Park. It was a great location, not in the centre, but in the south side of Glasgow and had ample parking. Everything was done to ease your tots and keep them safe. There were several signs and plenty of staff on hand for directions. In the Snowdome was incredible. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was done to perfection. It ran smoothly getting your tickets checked and picking up any items you may have pre-ordered or gifts or drinks and snacks. The goody bags were at £39 with a £10 discount if bought in advance and looked worth the money. We didn’t buy this, but we did buy a light up electronic windmill which was only £7. I have been to other places and this is much more expensive for a similar item. The shop was extremely reasonable and I was pleasantly surprised.
The stage was setup and the stadium style seating meant that you could see without obstruction. Children could move about in their seats as they were stair style seats rather than actual seats, meaning no falling off them. You don’t get a specific seat, so it is good to get there early. The atmosphere was exciting and with the exception of it being a little chilly that day it was perfect. I would recommend you take a cardigan, it’s not the warmest. The stage has the main characters and around the stage it is projected with images. Prior to the show the ninky-nonk, pinky ponk and a few other characters are projected and move around adding to the excitement of the buildup. The narrator comes on and gives a count down to the show. It’s all very exciting.
When the characters come on stage everyone cheers and you can see all their little faces in awe at the characters they have watched for so long come to life.
The HaHoos were projected around the stage, I tried to capture it. The projections really made the story come to life and the Ninky Nonk and Pinky Ponk could go around the stage using this method. There was even a 4d style effect when there were some falling petals from the trees, which were also blown out into the crowd. All very exciting.
The stories form the same format at the tv show and the same stories it would seem, which is the only bit I found disappointing. If you’ve seen all the In the Night Garden episodes once or twice or a hundred times you’ll know the story, I had hoped it would be a new one. The Ninky Nonk show told us the story of how Iggle Piggle loses his blanket. The Pinky Ponk show tells the story of Makka Pakka washing everyones faces.
It was nice they followed the same style of the show were they all still went to sleep and Iggle Piggle sailed away at the end. After the show you could meet and greet the characters, it was well organised with colouring pages and In the Night Garden on the tv screens to occupy the little ones until their name was called. We didn’t do this, but we did buy a balloon and at only £4, again good value I felt.
The show was on for just under an hour and the price matched that. Nothing was a rip off and the staff were amazing, the could not help you more. It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Watching something like this through the eyes and excitement of a two year old is incredible, something you won’t ever forget even if your little one doesn’t remember it when they are a teenager, they will still be talking about it months later and you will remember that look of amazement for the rest of your life. This really is a must see for any In The Night Garden fan.