How a Jellyfish Saved the World

It’s not easy to deliver an entertaining show for very young children that also gets across a serious message. ‘How a Jellyfish Saved the World’ does just that. Through the story of Clyde the jellyfish, and his quest to find a friend, we go on a journey via puppetry, song and dance that transports us along ocean currents, into rock pools and deep under the waves. On the way we discover colourful creatures and catchy tunes, and follow the hapless and lonely Clyde as he falls in love with a dazzling plastic bag called ‘Bubbles’!

As Clyde discovers the truth about Bubbles, and the damage that plastic is doing to his ocean home, we follow as despair turns to hope and Clyde realises that Bubbles can have a useful new life as recycled marine plastic.

The age recommendation is 3+ and my 4 year old found it hard to grasp all the nuances of the story. It’s quite complex and is probably better suited to slightly older children to understand everything that is going on. That said, the puppets and set, complete with twinkly lights, plus the songs and moments for the audience to participate, offer plenty for a younger crowd to enjoy.

My mini reviewer said, “Plastic on the beach is bad!” and, “Is Bubbles a real jellyfish?”

- Charlotte Steel, edinburghfestivalsforkids

https://edinburghfestivalsforkids.com/how-a-jellyfish-saved-the-world/

“A wonderfully absorbing, visually compelling, always funny, and often thought-provoking piece of workshop work by a company I hope to see much much more of in the years to come.”
Editorial Rating: 4 Stars (Outstanding)

There is a lot of plastic in places it shouldn’t be. There is too much plastic in the sea. Something needs to be done to minimise and mitigate the impact on the creatures with which we share our homeworld. Clyde the orphaned jellyfish is not alone in the world. He is surrounded by weird and wonderful companions with whom he shares an ocean of possible adventures. But is there someone truly special for Clyde?

Jam Jar Theatre Company presents some of the most compelling, thoughtful, and entertaining puppetry to be seen anywhere this EdFringe. There’s plenty fewer fish and crabs in the sea since so many have turned up in Pleasance Courtyard to take part in this fine example of family-friendly programming.

We enter to discover an arched white screen on which some properly magical shadow puppetry will happen, flanked by two of the best-painted theatrescapes any of us have seen in an age. The art of backdrop painting for theatres has not exactly been lost, but it needs rediscovering in this age of big, cheap and cheap looking TV screens. This is a tech lite production until one of the songs which was disappointingly pre-recorded. Did someone miss their train to Waverly or their flight into Turnhouse. It’s a jarring note in a production that is otherwise lively and fluid performed by a cast of bright young things with a story to tell and a message to share.

In her EdFringe notebook, the one with Copenhagen’s statue of the little mermaid on the front cover, Daughter 1.0 (9yrs) wrote: “I went to How a jellyfish saved the world. In the show there was lots of shadow puppets as well as normal puppets to show the undersea characters apart from the two hilarious crabs who helped the young jellyfish make his friend happy. There was also a stylish crab who decorated himself with plastic witch was beaing thrown into the sea! The moral of the story is to look after the undersea creatures and their home.”

There are times when this script feels like an underwater camel, a seahorse designed by committee. The really rather fascinating asexual reproductive ability of jellyfish is touched on but bounces past the bouncy people in the front row with the speed of a Tiger on a trampoline on a jet ski. Clyde’s backstory and his romance are not as well connected as they might be. Still, this is a wonderfully absorbing, visually compelling, always funny, and often thought-provoking piece of workshop work by a company I hope to see much much more of in the years to come. With my school governor’s hat on this is a production I would urge colleagues to very seriously consider adding to any programme of live events.

Come for the wonder, stay for the delight, leave with a hopetomistic sense of what is possible. Get your coats on and go see this!

- Rated: Outstanding by Dan Lentell, GetYourCoatsOn

https://getyourcoatson.com/2024/08/16/how-a-jellyfish-saved-the-world-venue-33-until-aug-18th/

Joyful and thought-provoking. A treat for the eyes and ears!

How a Jellyfish Saved the World is a wonderfully sweet and moving puppetry show that will make you ardently wish you were 5 years old again. Not only does it delight its young target audience, adults will also enjoy this wholesome and poignant piece. Even if you’re not accompanying a young spectator, this is a show worth seeing. The cast are energetic and incredibly talented, engaging with young children and parents alike while performing original music that is emotional yet light, I’m sure your little ones will want to go back just so they can sing along! The set design and puppets are beautifully crafted and the show flows smoothly on a current of joy, friendship and love.

I’m sure we’ve all felt like Clyde, alone and adrift in the world, once in our lives! So go see this show and become besties with a jellyfish (and two devilishly funny crabs).

Warning: includes (air) tickling!

https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/how-a-jellyfish-saved-the-world#:~:text=How%20a%20Jellyfish%20Saved%20the%20World%20is%20a%20wonderfully%20sweet,this%20wholesome%20and%20poignant%20piece.