Today we headed to review Concerts in the Park Family Day (30th June 2019) which had an Alice in Wonderland theme to it.
Having grown up just down the road in Streetly, it was nice to head to this new event (3 years old) to see what it is all about.
The event opened at 11am (at the Boldmere gate entrance of Sutton Park) and we arrived just as the stewards started letting people in. The parking was ample at 10:55am and we were signposted over to the field by the Miller and Carter to park.
We lined up in a queue to have our tickets and bags checked (no glass allowed in the area) and we were given wristbands for the children to put their names on and our mobile numbers so we can be called if they manage to get lost. We thought this was a fantastic idea. So kudos to whoever idea this was.
The queues moved quickly and we were in shortly after 11am.
The space was secure and any areas where people could get in and out, were manned by security staff. It really was a family friendly area and everyone was looking around, with big smiles on their faces.
We headed for a nose around.
Matilda and Jemima played Twister with the Mad Hatter. They had never played twister before and they loved learning how to play. It wasn’t long before lots of other children heard the laughter and came to join in.
Next stop was the circus stand which also held some very interesting and fun looking hoppers. Matilda chose a parrot and Jemima chose a duck. And with the help of me and James, we bounced them around the course, finally ending the race on a draw. There was lots of laughter.
Jemima must be on her way to working in a circus as she was very good at plate spinning and hula hooping.
Matilda is more of the artistic and creative sister, so she was very happy to meet Sutton Outdoor Preschool who had a stand at the event. They had summery scented playdough, lots of outdoor items such as sticks, leaves and feathers and children could sit and make a variety of nature crafts.
We plan to head along to one of their Stay and Play sessions in the near future, so we can share more about the sessions with you all.
The Creation Station also had a tent where little ones could get some clay and make a teacup and saucer. Mine didn’t quite grasp that idea and just enjoyed playing with the clay and making it into various shapes. They really enjoyed themselves and I would definitely consider attending one of their fun weekly classes in the future or even one of their Arty Parties.
How fantastic that these activities were all within the cost of your tickets. The only added extras were £2 for face painting (aged 3 and over) and food and drink.
Jemima met Alan the Hawk and even managed to have a hold of him. I’m not sure what Alan thought of Jemima but she really liked him.
The girls met their very first talking caterpillar and for the first time in years, Jemima was speechless. This was the story corner where there were plenty of storytelling sessions under the book tree.
The food and drink corner was a decent size and their were plenty of options for people with varying diets.
Jemima loved having her photo taken on the Instagramable flower chair that Edinburgh Gin had put in the corner of the field.
There were a number of food vendors.
Me and the girls had food from Pizza Traders.
Cheesy garlic bread and a pizza ‘The Jerk One’ which included jerk chicken, bbq jerk base, pineapple, chilli salsa and mozerella. Jemima ate half of the pizza all to herself, telling everyone how yummy it was. And she was correct – it was delicious.
Just look at her cheeky, pizza filled face.
Hubby for his lunch had a lamb burger and chips from Mr V’s which he told me was really nice. The girls stole quite a few of his chips, so they must have been tasty.
We enjoyed sitting and eating our lunch in the sun whilst watching CBSO Family Concert Part 1 and Magic Voices (a local choir) who were great and sang some Disney tunes, much to the happiness of my children who enjoyed singing and dancing along.
Jemima was really getting into the rhythm and tunes.
After we finished eating, we moved onto the Blankets put out in front of the stage ready for the 12:40pm performance of the wonderful B’Opera Alice and the Library Tree which was superb.
Families really joined in. Loads of people moved to the front to take part and people at the back of the field were singing along too.
If you want to read all about Alice and the Library Tree, my review of the performance in Sutton Coldfield Library is here: https://smallhousebigtrips.co.uk/aliceandthelibrarytree/
The performance in the Park was just magical. It really worked. Was well thought out and performed. I hope the B’Opera team and all those behind Alice and the Library Tree (including Folio Sutton Coldfield) all go to bed tonight with huge smiles on their faces. They did fantastically.
I believe lots of people will be talking about this performance, and this years Concerts in the Park, for a long time to come.
The Tuneless Choir, Sutton Rock Choir, Singing Community of Choirs, Sutton Coldfield Musical Theatre Company and Let’s All Dance were more fantastic groups that took to the stage to perform in front of a large number of people. Did you see them? Take pictures? Have friends in the groups? If so, tag us in your posts on social media, we would love to see how much you all enjoyed the day too.
It was the perfect weather for the performance. Plenty of sun, perfect picnic weather and that’s what many people were doing. Having picnics in front of this huge stage, relaxing as families and enjoying a Sunday with family and friends.
There were ample toilets including disabled toilets, separate toilets for males and females and baby changing facilities. All were really clean and tidy.
All of the staff were lovely. Funny, great with kids and adults and they all really helped to make this event so great.
We will be back again next year, we had so much fun and we hope if you went, you had a great time and if you didn’t, that I’ve managed to twist your arm for next year.
Disclaimer: We were kindly given press tickets to review Concerts in the Park and give an honest opinion on the event. We absolutely loved it and will be back again next year. Thank you.