A Half Moon and Z-Arts co-production for ages 4-9
Available for booking for performances between 2 October – 16 November 2025.
Please note, this tour requires a successful touring grant from Arts Council England as it falls outside of Half Moon’s and Z-Arts’ NPO portfolio funding. This bid has been made so we are taking firm pencils from interested venues.
Grandad Anansi
Grandad is as smart and mischievous as the wily Anansi legend, a part human, part spider and the subject of many West African and Caribbean folk stories. Can he find a way to tell his granddaughter about his plans to return to Jamaica, his beloved homeland?
Join our intrepid characters as they step into the unexpected in this humorous and heartfelt inter-generational adventure. With captivating songs and joyous dancing, Grandad Anansi is an uplifting tale of love, courage and letting go that celebrates storytelling and shines a light on Jamaican culture and the Windrush generation.
Written by award-winning children’s author Elayne Ogbeta, Grandad Anansi is a Half Moon and Z-arts co-production: an exciting collaboration by the UK’s leading small-scale young people’s venue and touring company and Manchester’s unique venue for children and families.
This piece was developed in partnership with the African Caribbean Care Group and schools in Hulme, Manchester.
Grandad Anansi won Best Performance at the Manchester Culture Awards 2023.
Grandad Anansi toured to over 30 venues and libraries in Autumn 2022, and is back due to popular demand.
Our productions don’t educate, as such, advocating instead that there are not always correct answers or solutions when talking about or addressing prejudice, social injustices, equality and social inclusion. Like any good story, Grandad Anansi allows the audience to join up their own dots, think creatively and ask questions so they can discover their own answers to complex issues even at a very early age through experiencing a high-quality theatre adventure.
Images, trailers and assets
Production images and a trailer are available to advertise the show, which can be downloaded at the link below. Also available are video interviews with the show’s author and director and review graphics.
To view the full production via a professionally edited film of the 2022 production, please request.
You can access the script of this play via the British Library’s MPS Modern Playscripts Collection. This play is also listed on the National Theatre’s Black Plays Archive.
Download images and PR assets Explore the original production on our digital archive
Show information
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- Performances last 40 mins (no interval).
- 1 or 2 shows a day.
- If a 2-show day a minimum of 2 hours between the start of shows (e.g. 11am & 1pm) is required.
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- Get-in: 2.5 hours before half with pre-rig completed prior to get in.
- Get-out: 1 hour.
- Venue Configuration: End on. Performing area minimum 6.5m meters (wide) by 5.5m (depth) with 3.5m (height).
- Lighting: A full lighting plan will be supplied. We will require the use of the venues lighting desk.
- Sound: We tour a Mac with QLAB but will need to plug this into the venues P.A. system. As there is also a live musician on stage we require 2 x lr line ins.
- Staffing: There are 2 performers, and a live musician plus a company stage manager who will operate lighting and sound, but we do require 1 in-house technician to assist with get-in, focus, plot and the get-out.
- Parking: For a sprinter size van.
- Facilities: Dressing rooms for 2 performers.
Technical Requirements (non-traditional spaces inc rural touring spaces):
- Note that the piece is designed to be presented self-sufficiently and without blackout as we tour our own recorded sound. All we need is 1 contact to help with get-ins. Set-up times are 90 mins, exit within 45 mins.
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- Dedicated support from the marketing/PR and technical team at Half Moon.
- Up to 500 A5 colour flyers and 15 A3 colour posters. (NB: overprinting will be at an additional cost, please enquire).
- Images/production photos plus digital assets for use within venue brochures or broader usage.
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- For 1 or 2 shows per day.
- £950 + VAT
- Venue that are part of the Big Imaginations Consortium, please reference this when making enquiries.
- Please enquire for prices when booking multiple consecutive days.
- Note for venues at very long distances from the NW, an additional supplement of £120 per day may apply. Note venues that require a get-in the day before may be subject to a fee supplement.
- Please note that these fees are subject to a small additional supplement if your venue makes a compulsory contra to us for your costs at the contracting stage (e.g. credit card/box office; get-in/out; marketing/brochure contributions).
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We are able to offer a range of bespoke creative learning activities for schools and family groups on request to complement the performance at additional costs. Please enquire for prices.
Reviews and audience comments
“A colourful, amazing production,”
⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Elayne Ogbeta’s warm, pleasing and thoughtful show…manages to pack in more layers than a good strudel…. Storytelling, and its extraordinary power, is at the centre of the piece.”
Chris Elwell | 020 7709 8902 or chris@halfmoon.org.uk
Isah Levi Roach | 0161 697 5908 or isah@z-arts.org
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