I’m quite a hurried person. That is, I’m almost always running late and thus panicked about getting to my destination within a realistically acceptable timeframe. Today wasn’t like that.

I’d arranged to meet a couple of my Glasgow Craft Mafia amigos this evening and with it being a Sunday, public transport being abysmal and the kids’ swimming lessons to consider I ended up in Glasgow with Greer an hour earlier than I needed to be.

Greer was in a great frame of mind and so I thought it might be nice to have a wee look-see in one of the toy shops nestled in the St Enoch’s Centre, perhaps to get a little treat as a thanks for her company. We wandered up through the mall and in the new shops (at the new entrance on the corner of Buchanan St/Argyle St/St Enoch’s Square) there was this bizarre dark set-up with flashing lights and ye olde fairground music. Like moths to a flame, we both stopped chattering and moved towards the window to investigate – whereupon we were accosted by a lovely young man who told us to go on in, the show had just started.

What we had stumbled upon was the very last showing on the very last day of Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre‘s residency to mark the start of the Merchant City Festival. Unbelievable luck!

We were watching the Travelling Circus show and I honestly don’t know where to start describing it. I’ve seen it reviewed as “kinetic theatre” and a “scrapheap ballet” – it was just the most amazing piece I’ve seen. The sculptures are made up of both carved pieces and old scrap, all choreographed to touching, haunting music. It’s bizarre, it’s creepy and it’s beautiful and magical all at once.

My favourite piece was this one – it’s Harlequin and Pierrot, who have been competing for the love of Columbine for so long that they’ve not noticed she has become Death.

I couldn’t believe it when I got chatting with a lady at the end and she told me that not only are Sharmanka based at Trongate 103 for the rest of the year but in actual fact, the company has been based in Glasgow since 1995!

Please do go and see the show, details on times etc are available on the Sharmanka website here and are a bargain when you consider two kids can go in with a paying adult.

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Posted under Glasgow, with the kids