Monday, August 13, 2012

Nickelodeon's Preschool Global Adventurer 'Dora The Explorer' To Visit Pleasure Beach, Blackpool Before Heading To London, UK's West End

From The Blackpool Gazette:
Global adventurer rests a while in Blackpool

Dora the Explorer Live - The Globe, Blackpool Pleasure Beach

She's travelled the world but before heading to the West End, the Nickelodeon channel's favourite youngster just had to stop off in Blackpool for a couple of weeks.

With Nickelodeonland [Nickelodeon Land] only a matter of yards away the Globe – normally a circus style almost-in-the-round performance area – has been converted into a proscenium venue for the UK premiere of her stage show.

Whilst adults may wonder what a Spanish youngster was doing touring Australia before her Blackpool stopover and just why she has an American accent peppered with the occasional Spanglish phrases, youngsters aren’t half as analytical.

It helps that this a well staged, well dressed and ambitiously choreographed showcase for the award winning character and her much loved colourful sidekicks.

Her fan base loves them all – Boots the helpful monkey, Benny the lovable bull, Isa the iguana, Tico the squirrel and the somewhat stranger Backpack and Map (er, they’re a talking backpack and map, silly!) and more.

Throw in her scientific cousin Diego (now spun off into his own series) and Swiper The Fox, a sneaker toy snatcher who is about as fearsome as our own boom booming Basil and it's a formula for success.

The songs are catchy and commercial, the storyline is simple and the script is hypnotically repetitive so youngsters have no problems or pretensions about joining in Basically Dora loses her pet teddy which, in a world populated by seemingly careless children, ends up in The City of Lost Toys. Various pitfalls have to be overcome before she is reunited allowing for plenty of shouting, number games, singalongs and rudimentary lessons in Spanish.

Abandon logic, just go with the flow - the children will already be ahead of you.

n Nickelodeon's Dora the Explorer Live! Search for the City of Lost Toys is performed daily (not Tuesdays) until Sunday August 26. Shows at 10.30am, 1 and 3.30pm.
Also, from The Blackpool Gazette:
What's On Thursday 16th August

DORA THE EXPLORER LIVE! SEARCH FOR THE CITY OF LOST TOYS. UK premiere prior to a West End run for the Nickelodeon star. The Globe, Blackpool Pleasure Beach. Daily (Not Tuesdays), 10.30am, 1 and 3.30pm. Ends August 26.