Winter Holiday Show: Whalebone

Can we save our stories when the robots arrive?
“This is the kind of show your kids will love. It is full of junk, fantastical objects, artificial intelligence, drama, thrills and puzzle solving.” – Samsara Dunston

Welcome to the Depository, a mysterious bureau that has seen better days. The last, rather whimsical worker continues with a wondrous task. With the help of some odd and amazing machinery, he extracts the stories that live in old, discarded objects and safeguards these memories in the magical 'mother of stories', the place where all stories are kept. This strange and vulnerable world starts to fall apart when the place is under attack by a rogue A.I. who tries to install malware... and only two unlikely buddies can save the Depository and its stories. Storytelling versus data management, human versus machine: a gripping and humorous clash between the analog and the digital, told through dazzling video and computer animations, quirky contraptions, robotics, clunky inventions and flying objects. Physical reality turns virtual and back in this family show about what makes us human, the stories we tell, and the artificial intelligence knocking at our doors. Telling a tale full of magic and action, WHALEBONE is funny, intriguing and touching. It opens the door to a fantastical world where the future of humanity is under scrutiny. Performed by the imaginative mind of clown, tinkerer, inventor and comedian Jens Altheimer, winner of the Adelaide Fringe Award for Best Production for Children with Squaring the Wheel and nominated for the same award with Loose Ends.

Warnings: Includes fast-paced video effects and twitchy sound.
Age restrictions: 7-12 years.

This project is supported by Regional Arts Victoria and Creative Victoria.