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Actress says I Believe in Unicorns will move adults as much as children

SINGAPORE - It’s inventive and magical, with a beautiful and poignant story which will move and surprise everyone, even adults. That is the bold claim made by the actress helming theatre production I Believe in Unicorns, which will be staging five shows from Thursday (Feb 4) to Sunday at the upcoming KidsFest.

Actress Danyah Miller performing in the play I Believe in Unicorns. Source: ABA Productions

Actress Danyah Miller performing in the play I Believe in Unicorns. Source: ABA Productions

SINGAPORE - It’s inventive and magical, with a beautiful and poignant story which will move and surprise everyone, even adults. That is the bold claim made by the actress helming theatre production I Believe in Unicorns, which will be staging five shows from Thursday (Feb 4) to Sunday at the upcoming KidsFest.

“(Adults) arrive thinking they’re coming to a children’s show and then they leave being really moved by the story,” said Danyah Miller, adding that many have told her they weren’t expecting that. For instance, an audience member came up to her after a show in Hong Kong last week and told her: “I’ve been to see a lot of children’s shows. Sometimes I fall asleep and sometimes they’re alright. But with yours, it was for me just as much as it was for my child,” she told TODAY in an interview this afternoon (Feb 1).

Miller, by the way, plays all the parts in the one-woman show that is based on Michael Morpurgo’s book of the same name, from the young boy Tomas to the Unicorn Lady. Lest you think that sounds terribly boring, Miller assures the reporter during the interview that it’s all going to be fun, inspirational and heartwarming. Case in point: It also won an Argus Angel Award for Artistic Excellence at the 2014 Brighton Festival.

Set in wartime at a European city, the story follows Tomas, who hates reading and school, but whose world is turned around after he becomes captivated by stories told by the librarian, the Unicorn Lady, in his local library. The set is a beautiful creation of huge piles of books and rickety ladders, and Miller brings her stories to life with a little “magic”, or props hidden within those books.

Another treat for audience goers? They live “in the world” of the show, that is, Miller’s Unicorn Lady speaks to them as though they are characters in the story. Every show also has a short segment where Miller tells a spontaneous new story by gathering ideas from the audience.

The show will spark imagination from all ages, said the 50-year-old. “Imagination is like a muscle. And if you don’t use your arms or legs, then those muscles begin to wither. Imagination is the same, the more we use it, the stronger it becomes. Storytelling really helps to develop that muscle.”

I Believe in Unicorns, which launched in 2013, has done hundreds of shows in various venues, including two seasons at Vaudeville Theatre in London’s West End. It will end its run with a final performance on Feb 19 as part of the Imagine Children’s Festival, so its Singapore shows might just be the last time you can catch it. For more information, visit http://www.sistic.com.sg/events/uni0216

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