Punchdrunk and Doctor Who invade Manchester International Festival

MIF and the BBC are collaborating with the award-winning theatre company Punchdrunk to create an extraordinary event for children aged 6-12 and their families: The Crash Of The Elysium. Following last week's announcement that the show will be a live Doctor Who Adventure, MIF today announces additional Family Performances will be going on sale due popular demand.

Tom MacRae, writer and co-creator of The Crash Of The Elysium said: "The Crash Of The Elysium is unlike anything else you have ever experienced in the world of Doctor Who. This is your story, your mission, you are the hero. Everything depends on you. If you don't turn up, the world does not get saved.

Punchdrunk are theatrical wizards. Their shows are a stunning blend of magic, excitement, adventure and impossibility. Once you enter a Punchdrunk show, the laws of physics are switched off until you leave again. There is no stage, there is no comfy seating, there is no division between the world of the audience and the world of the show.

You are at the heart of the action and you drive the story forward. No two shows will ever be the same, no individual adventure will ever be repeated.

The madness and brilliance of Doctor Who could not find a better theatrical partnership than Punchdrunk, and slamming these two incendiary giants together has produced the most exciting hour of entertainment anyone could ever wish for.

Felix Barrett of Punchdrunk said: "Punchdrunk is delighted to be working with the BBC once again, this time for an exciting new audience and one that's very dear to our hearts. You might say 6 - 12 year olds are at the perfect ages for Punchdrunk's work. Certainly, we've always been on a mission to spark our adult audiences back to that childhood state of imaginative freedom and sense of adventure that kids possess in abundance. Over the past couple of years, our Enrichment department has been developing innovative work with children in schools, exploring the same immersive techniques that make up the Punchdrunk theatrical experience. Now, with The Crash of the Elysium, there's a fantastic opportunity for Punchdrunk to take all of that imaginative energy back to the source, in a thrilling live show made especially for kids."

Alex Poots from MIF said: "Punchdrunk and the Doctor Who team are world leaders in their fields. We're delighted to have brought these two brilliant architects of the imagination together to create what we believe is going to be one of the most talked about children's shows this year. MIF takes its work for kids seriously - and this is going to be seriously exciting theatre for 6-12 year olds."

There are two different types of performances of The Crash of the Elysium - Children Only performances and Family performances (please see notes to editors).
Press tickets are available in two different formats. Adult reviewers accompanied by appropriately aged children are welcome to book tickets for the following performances:
Friday 1 July: Saturday 2 July: Sunday 3 July:
4pm, 4.10pm, 4,20pm, 4.30pm, 4.40pm and 4.50pm 12.30pm, 12.40pm, 12.50pm and 1pm 12.20pm, 12.30pm, 12.40pm, 12.50pm and 1pm

Very limited numbers of tickets are available for these performances, so please respond as quickly as possible with your requests. For those of you that would like to send an unaccompanied child to review the show, please contact us with the date and time slot that you would like and we will do our best to accommodate you. Performance times can be found by checking http:/mif.co.uk/event/the-crash-of-the-elysium-a-punchdrunk-show-for- children-aged-6-12/.

Creative team Created by Felix Barrett and Tom MacRae Written by Tom MacRae Based on an original idea by Steven Moffat Directed by Felix Barrett Designed by Livi Vaughan Lighting Design by Paul Normandale Sound Design by Stephen Dobbie

Commissioned by Manchester International Festival, BBC, London 2012 Festival and Salford City Council. Produced by Manchester International Festival, Punchdrunk and BBC Wales. Funded by the National Lottery through the Olympic Lottery Distributor.

THE CRASH OF THE ELYSIUM MediaCityUK Studios, Salford Quays Onsale now Advance booKing Strongly recommended as capacity is strictly limited Box Office: www.mif.co.uk / Quay Tickets + 44 161 876 2198

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