How does it feel receiving theatre through the post? What’s it like when sensory experiences transform such familiar surroundings? We’re excited to share what families had to say about this At Home show:
“A World Beneath Us was amazing… My daughter was so happy and proud and excited for me to share her experience. It was wonderful and very very special.”
“It was wonderful to have something that was so engaging not only for her but also for the rest of the family and lovely to be able to enjoy it together.”
“It was like Christmas receiving your box of wonderful goodies – and a gift that will keep on giving.”
“Honestly one of the best experiences”
“Wow, how amazing and well thought out. Thank you to all involved for giving us this opportunity to explore the theatre in a sensory way and a relaxed environment, was fantastic and well received by my daughter”
“I’m just stunned at how amazing the whole show is, very well presented and I can see how much thought has gone into making the show as accessible to all as is possible, I’m very grateful to all”
“It’s a lovely resource to keep and return to taking on a different experience each time.”
“Was great to have the box over the holidays to use and experience. We enjoyed the whole experience from lifting out all objects from the box to seeing the finished product.”
Credit: Supplied by family / Suzi Corker
[My child] was at times mesmerized by it and other times shrieking away with joy. It was great that she got to enjoy it together with her sister too.
“This was a really fun and exciting experience for us.”
“absolutely magical”
“the care and details that have gone into it are amazing”
“It has opened up a world to explore both inside and outside when we are able to access it. The forest is an incredible place and we can now appreciate it on a different level.”
“Another calming experience as though we were transported into another world”
“the quality of the components and the thought that went into creating are just amazing”
“excellent, well thought out and put together experience which my son enjoyed.”
Sam Bowen is an SEND in Museums Consultant, founder of SEND in Museums, award-winning inclusion campaigner and mum to Lucy. Her family have experienced all of Oily Cart’s At Home shows.
The Covid-19 legacy
As a shielding family with a disabled child at home in lockdown, it was extremely isolating for all of us. We missed the cultural experiences we had before, like going to Sensory Theatre.
Unable to make the in-person shows we had always enjoyed attending, Oily Cart began experimenting with new formats that would bring sensory theatre to audiences in a safe way.
One of these formats was At Home shows. These send the magic of theatre through the post, directly to each family. Together, the family unwrap a series of sensory packages that gradually build a narrative, at a time and in a space that works best for them.
We were lucky to be one of the families sent Space to Be. This was the first At Home theatre experience by the team at Oily Cart, and I can honestly say it was a profoundly moving experience.
Lucy and her family during the Space to Be experience
Our Journey with At Home experiences
Each Space to Be box had different activities in. The first was just for me as the carer parent. In 13 years, no one had ever acknowledged my emotional needs in the way this box did. I put on the eye mask, held the tactile sculpture and listened to an audio track that spoke to me directly and brought me to tears. Here I was seen, valued and even thanked for the role I have been playing that’s so hidden from society, but that Oily Cart knew was pivotal to my family.
We unpacked a new box each day and enjoyed them as a family. One had a self-build sensory space which made a dark den. We all lay in it together, my husband and I with our daughter between us. Instantly calmer, nurtured in a safe space together. Our daughter played the Lyra musical instrument whilst we listened to the audio track on the Bluetooth speaker that was in the box.
At one point the non-word voice of a disabled child spoke out and our daughter responded, vocalising back. I thought I’d dreamt it: what had just happened in this magical ‘tent’ hadn’t happened ever before. What had the child on the speaker said that my daughter had understood and responded to? That I couldn’t understand but she did made it all the more powerful and empowering for us.
We bought our own sensory tent after this with lights and a Bluetooth speaker and regularly now use it as a family to chill out. We were so moved by the Space to Be experience.
Lucy inside the Space to Be tent
Why At Home shows are essential
Through Space to Be, Oily Cart learnt that At Home experiences are often the most accessible, or even the only, way that some families can experience Sensory Theatre, even once lockdowns ended. So few opportunities for families like ours are available outside the home and that’s a desperate shame.
There can be so many barriers to attending live theatre, from lack of transport or physical access, to unpredictable medical and care needs which make booking and turning up to a show stressful or impossible. Families who experienced Space to Be shared that it was ‘nice to do something as a family where there were no barriers to everyone being included in the experience’, that being in a private, familiar setting meant young people could ‘relax and fully be themselves’, and that it gave them the space and opportunity to ‘just be together’.
The future of accessible theatre
So, Oily Cart have committed to making At Home shows part of their main programme, putting the same level of resource, craft, creativity, and rigour into these formats as the live touring show.
Lucy experiencing A World Beneath Us
This summer, families across the country, including ours, received A World Beneath Us, a sensory show about the invisible world beneath our feet: mycelium. Through a sensory film and accompanying sensory experiences, the show unearthed these magical, natural networks to explore the hidden world in the heart of each home, reflecting and celebrating each family as its own ecosystem. Again, it gave us new ideas. The shadow play with the shadow boxes and canvas screen was really effective. Such a simple idea but one I hadn’t thought of before! Another moment involves water being lit from beneath; seeing the movement this made on the ceiling was mesmerising.
As a family, A World Beneath Us reminded us why we love getting the chance to play with Oily Cart. At Home activities are not only more accessible, they can be revisited time and again and then adapted or added to with other items at home. A different At Home experience we enjoyed, Sound Symphony, has completely transformed bathtime every night in our house. One activity box has literally had a life-changing impact on all of us. You can’t really put a value on that.
Oily Cart are bravely stepping outside the box by delivering magical shows full of meaningful moments of wonder right into the homes of those who need and deserve them. At Home shows are important because they see, value and celebrate children like mine, and families like ours.
Space to Be was created for and with disabled children, young people and their families in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and toured across the UK from March – August 2021. This video includes photos, videos and quotes to give an insight into families’ experiences of the show.
Space to Be was Oily Cart’s first show created to be sent to audience’s homes and experienced remotely. From March – August 2021, it toured for 20 weeks and to 70 families across every region across the UK, from the Scottish Highlands to Cornwall.
Families’ photos of Space to Be
Here’s some of the families’ feedback:
“Deep, meaningful, powerful and profound experiences which were new to us as a family and were very special.”
“it was amazing! And it was lovely to see all of the family be able to access and enjoy the same activity!”
“It was incredible and awesome- so well thought out and the attention to detail was amazing.You are futures ahead of what theatre can do. We were very lucky to have experienced this”
“Was nice to do something as a family where there were no barriers to everyone being included in the experience”
“This has been one of the most wonderful experiences that has helped bring us together as new stars.”
“It has been wonderful taking time out of our busy lives to ‘just be’.”
“Each day we were so excited to open a new box and discover another lovely experience (…) Many thanks again for a wonderful and magical week!”
“This was amazing to be able to have this experience at home to feel safe, we shielded for such a long time”
“I was very moved by how well thought out the activities were to engage children with complex additional needs – we felt included. It also gave us something to look forward to each day and after each experience we felt very positive; I felt calm, my sons felt happy and relaxed. It was lovely to share together.”
“Thank you so much for an absolutely fantastic week spending time together as a family enjoying “Space to Be” sensory boxes. Each and every day we were filled with excitement and anticipation to open the next box. You have filled us with inspiration and ideas of more ways to create lovely sensory experiences”
“Thank you for ensuring our family carved out ‘space to be’ together this week. An amazing sensory experience for us all that was out of this world! A high quality experience that will be a positive memory for us all.”
Families’ photos of Space to Be
“The whole experience was amazing and was something we could all enjoy equally as a family.”
“it felt so special to have a beautiful experience that connected us all.”
“I asked our younger son what he wanted to say about Space to Be and he gave a thumbs up. I asked what he liked about it and he said ‘everything'”
“a memorable, quality experience.”
“It gave us something to look forward to each day and after each experience we felt very positive.”
“Thank you so much for this lovely week of togetherness, it was perfect.”
“We enjoyed the whole experience so much!”
“this was really special to do during half term and will stick with us for a very long time.”
“thinking about us as parents and carers who need time to relax and just be was very special and an important.”
‘It was lovely to do something at home but all together.”
“Couldn’t praise the whole experience highly enough. Absolutely brilliant.”
“It was a magical and powerful experience which has lived with us and opened our eyes to the power of a sensory space at home.”
The restrictions of the pandemic mean we have had to dig deep and get creative to continue performing for the young people and families we make work for and with, many of whom are shielding. In Autumn 2020, we toured a re-imagined version of our show Jamboree. The band popped up on doorsteps, in playgrounds, and through Zoom screens across London. Watch the video to find out how it went …
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