Description
Book SynopsisImagine swapping places with a monster for day... A funny and thrilling play for children (aged 6+) about friendship and facing up to your fears. Ben has a BIG problemo. His best friend Vince has stolen his precious binoculars, his Dad is far, far away... oh, and there's a monster under his bed. But when Ben swaps places with the underbed monster, Ben's life - and his school - is turned inside out, and upside down. First presented as a staged reading in April 2008, at the John F Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington D.C, USA, as part of New Visions/New Voices. First produced at Polka Theatre, 6 June 2009. North American premiere at the Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People, Toronto, March 2010. Resources for teachers and parents: Polka Theatre's free Monster Under the Bed Activity Pack download contains activities for you to do with your children after you have seen and/or read the play. Most of these exercises are drama based and are good for developing speaking and listening skills. All of the exercises are suitable for both KS1 and KS2 pupils. Watch Allen MacInnis, Artistic Director of Young People's Theatre (Toronto), talk about the play https://youtu.be/sYyqA6rR7F8.
Trade Review“Drawing with delicacy and wit upon the childhood fantasy of the monster under the bed, writer Kevin Dyer proves why that endangered species, the original play for children, is worth saving. This is a terrifically entertaining story about fathers and sons and the monster inside all of us. What's more, it is positively postmodern in its literary references, with shades of The Borrowers, and a Father Underbed Monster who bears more than a passing resemblance to Roald Dahl's BFG. There's plenty of fun as the Little Underbed Monster takes Ben's place at school for the day, causing havoc in the classroom ... the over-sixes will just enjoy the romp. It's a joyful examination of the benefits and snares of believing the ridiculous.” Lyn Gardner, Guardian
