Red Herring is a theatre company based in Bideford, North Devon that specialises in outdoor, interactive performance that blurs the edges between the performance and the audience. For the Finding Nature’s Footprints project, Red Herring’s Flights of Fancy project were involved in connecting primary school children to their local areas of outstanding natural beauty. 

Northam Burrows with East-the-Water Primary School

Between February and July 2022, Red Herring worked with year 6 at East-the-Water Primary School by exploring Northam Burrows Country Park. The pupils used sound recorders to create stories and poems from what they experienced. 

 

Hartland Abbey with Hartland Primary School

From February to July 2023, Red Herring Productions worked with Hartland Primary School to explore Hartland Abbey. They went with the Finding Nature’s Footprints team and classes 5 and 6 to Hartland Abbey to explore the pasture, temperate rainforest, river, and coastal cliffs from the Abbey down to Blackpool beach. By utilising all the senses, the pupils thoroughly explored the different habitats and wrote down their thoughts in notebooks. They then met up several more times to discuss what they had experienced and created a performance along with costumes for the 4 habitats. Family members gathered in the playground and were transported to Hartland abbey through the use of movement and sound.