Half Term is officially here which means plenty of theatrical fun for families at the Hippodrome.

Following hot of the heels of a jam-packed Chinese New Year in Southside, we’re continuing our celebration of the UK’s links to East Asia with A Thousand Crane’s colourful and inventive new children’s show, The Little Mochi Man on Sat 24 Feb.

Inspired by the traditions of Shogatsu (Japanese New Year celebrations) and featuring original ‘origami’ puppets, animation and music, The Little Mochi Man is the perfect introduction to Japan for young children.

Starring Haruka Kuroda (best known as co-presenter of the award winning CBBC show Officially Amazing) and Natsumi Kuroda, the show is the latest production from A Thousand Cranes theatre company, who aim to create visual, vibrant, physical theatre inspired by stories from Japan and Europe which celebrate and unite the two differing cultures.

Ahead of The Little Mochi Man’s arrival in Birmingham, we were lucky enough to spend a few hours previewing the show in rehearsal where we learned all about the Japanese traditions of mochi-making and decorating, how Japanese families like to celebrate at New Year and just a few of the incredible locations our heroic ‘mochi’ encounters on his adventures across the country.

Take a look at our behind-the-scenes video to find out more…