On Thursday, July 13th Year 6 pupils presented their show to celebrate the end of their time at Lady Bankes Primary School. The title of the production was Pirates of the Curry Bean, a fun mixture of pirates, treasure and a great deal of witty dialogue as well as catchy songs.
The audience was first introduced to the Periwinkle family: Pearl, the mother, the landlady of a tavern, played by Amber, her two children, Jack played by Ralph, Liza played by Millie and their pets Fiddlesticks and Blue Beard played by Lucas and Ellie. The children believe that their father was “lost at sea” some time in the past. They have in a safe a treasure map which means little to them at this point.
Soon the audience meets the pirate captain Redbeard confidently played by Samuel who lustily introduces himself through a song. We learn that his ship is so named because the pirate crew eat curry and beans all the time and that they haven’t set sail for ages. They declare “If only we had a treasure map!” This is when the trouble begins.
The pirates become aware that there is a map in the family’s safe which they want, so they blow it open using dynamite (the flash and sound effect were excellent). They also capture Pearl and take her on board the Curry Bean. The children rush to the docks only to discover that the ship has already sailed. They manage to get aboard The Crunchy Frog. At this point the audience meets Admiral Soratio Sornblower played by Mia, Captain Cod played by Maddie K and the rest of the crew. The admiral knew nothing about the sea or ships and the humour of his ignorance was admirably conveyed to the audience by Mia.
Captain Redbeard and his crew believe that having a woman on board may mean that their voyage may be cursed. Strange markings are discovered on the map and it appears the treasure is on an island – Lumbago. Eventually the two captains see each other’s ships, one bearing a naval flag, the other the pirate skull and cross bones. The two groups fight, Pearl is able to board the Crunchy Frog and when the crew realise the pirates have a treasure map they abandon their ship and become new recruits who have chosen the pirates’ life! Redbeard performs a happy solo and the whole cast eventually join in.
Later a violent storm takes place; the actors’ swaying movement portrayed this very effectively. Many are lost but Pearl and her children are saved from the wreck and are washed up on the island of Lumbago and they find the treasure chest. The natives – the Wonga tribe – arrive and the whole cast gave a beautiful performance of “Lumbago, the island of dreams” whilst moving to the rhythm of the music. The Chief (played by Callum) then addresses the audience. He tells everyone that they will all be executed as treasure hunting on the island is banned!
All good stories have a twist which leads to a happy ending and this one is no exception. It is revealed that Chief Wonga is actually Stanley Periwinkle who was a pirate, Pearl’s husband and the children’s father. In the past he ended on the island with the treasure which he buried; he was then hit on the head by a coconut and lost his memory. The islanders later adopted him as their chief. The children’s medallions which they always wore were keys to open the chest and the contents are shared by all. To celebrate the whole cast performed the final song – Piratical Style. Every member of the cast contributed to the success of the production as their enjoyment in taking part was transferred to the audience, resulting in a brilliant show.
At the end of the show Head Teacher, Mrs Kate Needs, praised the children for giving an outstanding performance, saying she was very proud of them. She also commended the pupils who acted professionally as stagehands and those responsible for lighting and sound. Finally she thanked the Year 6 Teaching Team for all their hard work and support which resulted in such an entertaining show.
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