Aardman in Concert: the tour begins!
- 16 hours ago
- 3 min read
Aardman in Concert premiered in Birmingham Town Hall on 1 May, followed by shows in London's Cadogan Hall, Salisbury City Hall, and Guildford G Live to the most enthusiastic, brilliant audiences!
“The premiere of Aardman in Concert was truly crackin'! Seeing families spellbound by Aardman's iconic animation and the sheer power of a live orchestra is a total joy—it really was a baa-rilliant start to the tour!” Claire Surman, General Manager, Carrot Productions
Aardman in Concert: audience feedback
The feedback from audience members so far has been heartwarmingly positive:
"Engaging presentation; the skill of musicians was superb"
"It was brilliant how the whole of the orchestra were dressed up as Aardman characters"
"The music was wonderful and it was great that the kids had an opportunity to meet the characters."
"Such a fun filled way to celebrate Aardman's 50th anniversary"
"Really good show - the orchestra were great and we got to do a modelling workshop with one of the Aardman animators after!"
and many, many more...!
Aardman in Concert: future tour dates
The 2026 Aardman in Concert tour will be continuing throughout Aardman's 50th Anniversary year, with performances at venues across the country. The future venues announced so far are:
Bristol | Bristol Beacon | 11 June
Glossop | Glossop Music Festival | 15-20 June
St Albans | The Alban Arena | 27 June
Budleigh | Budleigh Music Festval | 3 July
York | York Barbican | 29 August
Newcastle | Newcastle City Hall | 30 August
Manchester | Manchester Central Exchange Auditorium | 23 October
Chester | Chester Storyhouse | 26 October
Leicester | De Montfort Hall | 27 October
Nottingham | Royal Concert Hall | 27 November
Aardman in Concert: tickets
Tickets are selling fast for many of our upcoming performances, with some performances sold out and the evening performance at Bristol almost sold out. We'd love you to come and join us!
Aardman model making workshops
At some venues we had Aardman model making workshops on offer, giving people the chance to make their very own Feathers McGraw, Shaun the Sheep, or Gromit.
In Salisbury and Guildford, these were run by Aardman animator, Zoë Hutber. At each workshop 60 people got the chance to benefit from her brilliant insights, model making tips, and stories about Zoë's own experiences whilst working at Aardman.
These brilliant workshops were enjoyed by both little children and grown-up children alike!
We have self-led model making workshops available at future venues, including Glossop and Chester. For these self-led workshops, Aardman provide brilliant instructions and all the materials needed to create your own Aardman character. See our website for further details.
Meeting the musicians
Our amazing musicians all dressed up as different Aardman characters from across the years. Characters included Piella and Fluffles (see photo right), together with Wallace, Gromit, Bitzer, Lady Tottington, Wendolene and even some Cheese and a Turnip!
During the last piece in the show, some of our musicians walked out into the auditoriums whilst they played, and then met members of the audience. Children were able to chat with the musicians, have a go on some of the instruments, and some even requested a favourite tune for the musicians to play!
Meeting your idols
All the performances of Aardman in Concert feature special appearances by Shaun the Sheep and Wallace & Gromit.
Shaun the Sheep delighted audiences with his brilliant dance moves on stage as part of a screened montage of all of his memorable on-screen moments since his very first appearance in A Close Shave.
At the end of each show Wallace & Gromit also appeared on stage before joining our audiences front of house. Our excited audiences were then able to meet Wallace & Gromit in person, and have their photo taken with the iconic duo.
“It has been a privilege to work so closely with the Aardman team to bring these beloved characters to the stage accompanied by our amazing musicians to celebrate the 50 year legacy of Aardman” Rachel Whibley, Managing Director, Carrot Productions
Copyright © Aardman Animations Ltd. All rights reserved.
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