Farewell Bash Street’s Back at the McMenace! From Your Friend, The Big Draw’s Big Bash.

Over the last four months, here at Creative Learning HQ we have been living, breathing and embracing everything Bash Street and Beano as we celebrated 80 years of the Beano here at the McManus. STOP PRESS! We have even been DREAMING about Bash Street!

We have delivered over 140 Beano and Bash Street inspired events, school sessions and creative learning activities for families, schools and young people! Cor blimey!!

Last month saw us laugh, laugh and laugh some more as we rounded off a fantastic summer with one of our final Bash Street’s Back events for this year’s The Big Draw. The Big Draw was founded in 2000 and is a visual literacy charity that promotes the universal language of drawing as a tool for learning, expression and invention. The theme for 2018 was PLAY, and for us, this was the perfect opportunity to get our pencils at the ready to celebrate The Bash Street Kids and our city’s fascinating comic history.

Digital Doodles.

We enjoyed a fab comic and storyboarding workshop with our Comic Caper artists from Dundee’ Comic Space, before joining our special guest Dennis the Menace and his trusty sidekick Gnasher for our pop-up gallery activity ‘When The Bell Rings. Dennis and Gnasher kindly posed for their portraits so we could test our live drawing and portrait skills! We rounded off the day of comic inspiration with a live drawing session on our new digital smart screen and created digital storyboards inspired by Dundee’s love of comics!

This was the most successful ‘Big Draw’ yet! – Freelance Artist Feedback

What a great Creative Learning send off to our fabulous exhibition ‘Bash Street’s Back at the McMenace’!

Our latest exhibition, ARTIST ROOMS Lawrence Weiner is now open so keep up to date with our upcoming projects and reflections via the blog. Lots to come over the following weeks as we take a journey into the world of conceptual art with our McManus Youth Action group and the Wednesday Writers creative writing group.

#creativelearning #TheBigDraw #Play2018 #mcmanus #learn #create #discover #Dundee2018 #whatsondundee

Bash Street Summer S’kool – Comic Capers, Marvellous Music and Funny Business!

Our Bash Street Summer Skool is in full swing as we enter our final Skool week at Creative Learning HQ! Here is a run down of our Bash Street and Beano inspired Skool Departments and get a flavour of the projects that our star pupils have been working on! WHIZZ BANGS at the ready!

Our Department of Arty Capers focused on exploring the art of comic book making, working with the amazing Dundee Creative Comic Space. Our Summer Skool class firstly learned about how comics are created and constructed using drawing, speech bubbles and movement to tell the story of a character. Then our group developed their own characters, before creating their own story and drawings. Our Comic Space tutors followed this by teaching about the ‘inking up’ process, where the drawings get outlined and completed, before the comics were collated for printing.

Next up, our Department of Makin’ A Din have been learning about music, Beano-inspired sounds and instrument creation and construction. With a big SPLAT, WHACK and BOP, everyday materials have been transformed into music and sound makers! We’ve made panpipes, drum kits, maracas, rain sticks and even our own kazoos! Our class then combined their instruments and using their new construction skills to make collaborative ‘Beano Music Boxes’, with their own take on the sounds of the Bash Street Skool!

As well as making some great comics, stories and music boxes in our Arty Capers and Makin’ A Din Departments, our Department of Actin’ Up class have been learning how to tell the perfect joke, perfect their comedy timing, the art of improvisation and have learned techniques to use when developing characters for theatre. Our class have learned how actors can combine their voice and facial expressions to tell their stories and how physical theatre and movements can add another element to acting. There have also been lots of Beano and Bash Street pranks and high jinks added in there as well!

OurActin’ Up class have also had an opportunity to be involved in developing and leading our gallery drop in activity ‘When The Bell Rings’, which takes place in our Bash Street’s Back Exhibition. This is on each day during the school holidays; listen out for our school bell and head to our gallery classroom to take part!

#mcmenace #Beano80 #beanotown #YOYP2018 #Dundee2018 #LoveDundee #SunnyDundee #creativelearning

Skool’s Out but The Bash Street Summer Skool is About to Begin!

Calling all residents of Beanotown! Get your Beano chopper bike ready and join us and our favourite Bash Street Characters as we launch our summer project, The Bash Street Summer Skool next week!

Our Skool doors open on the 9th of July as we kick off with Dundee Comic Creative Space. Join these awesome comic experts and learn how to draw, write and design your very own McMenace comic! This Skool Department runs for two weeks; Week one is Monday 9th July – Thursday 12th July and Week two is Monday 16th July – Thursday 19th July. This Skool department is in class between 10am -1pm.

Our Makin’ A Din Department is next; work with our freelance musician’s and make and play your very own Beano-inspired musical instruments! This Skool department opens on Monday the 23rd July – Thursday 26th July for Week 1 and again on Monday 30th July – Thursday 2nd August for week 2; all Makin’ A Din sessions run between 10am – 12pm.

Our third Skool Department is the Department of Actin’ Up. Meet and work with our freelance actors from Zero Three 15 Company to perfect your comic timing with jokes, pranks and comedy high jinks! This Skool Department runs for two weeks; week one is Monday 23rd July – Thursday 26th July and Week two is Monday 30th July – Thursday 2nd August, between 2:00pm – 4:00pm.

We have spaces available in our Makin’ A Din and our Actin’ Up Departments! Our classes are in skool for the full two weeks Monday to Thursday; to book your two week place, please contact the Creative Learning team on 01382 307 216 or email us at creativelearning@leisureandculturedundee.com.

Have fun McMenaces! #mcmenace #Beano80 #beanotown #LoveDundee #YOYP2018 #SunnyDundee #Dundee2018 #creativelearning

Get ready for a McMenace Summer of fun!

Summer has officially arrived here at Creative Learning H.Q…. Sadly that doesn’t mean we have packed our bags and jetted off to sip tropical drinks in the sunshine…. Preparations have well and truly begun for ‘ THE McMENACE SUMMER S’KOOL!’

School may be coming to an end, but the McMenace Summer S’Kool is just warming up! Our fun, summer holiday project offers young people aged between 10-14 years an opportunity to explore the ‘Bash Street’s Back at the McMenace’ exhibition creatively through art, music and drama. There are three different ‘departments’ you can choose to enrol into where you will be given the opportunity to learn new skills, meet new friends and most of all have lots of fun!

When The Bell Rings and Beano-inspired art and crafts!

We kick off our McMenace Summer S’kool with a WHIZZ BANG on Monday 9th July with ‘Dundee Comics Creative Space’. In the Department of Arty Capers, you will be working alongside Dundee comic artists to develop ideas and create your very own McMenace inspired comic. Over the two weeks, you will be taken through the journey of comic production from character creations and to storyboarding, before inking up your final comic masterpiece!

In the Makin’ A Din Department, join professional musicians and create your own musical instrument. We will have lots of interesting and unusual materials to play with, before we embark on using our fantastical instruments to create a ‘Beano’ inspired score! Think WHIZZ, SPLAT, KAPOW with a whoopee cushion thrown there in as well!

For our third department, the Department of Actin’ Up, you will be exploring the world of improvised theatre, comedy and stand up. Using props and your imagination, actors from Zero Three 15 Company will teach you what makes a good joke, how to nail your comic timing and what makes comedy actually funny.

The dates for the Summer Skool departments are:

• Department of Arty Capers: Week 1: 9th-12th July & Week 2: 16th-19th July (10am-1pm)
• Department of Makin’ A Din: Week 1: 23rd-26th July & Week 2: 30th July-2nd August (10am-12pm)
• Department of Actin’ Up: Week 1 Week 1: 23rd-26th July & Week 2: 30th July-2nd August (2pm-4pm)

We still have spaces available on all of our school departments and are encouraging bookings for the full two week slots. To book, please call the Creative Learning Team on 01382 307 216 or email us at creativelearning@leisureandculturedundee.com

Have fun McMenaces!

#mcmenace #Beano80 #beanotown #LoveDundee #YOYP2018 #Dundee2018 #SunnyDundee