Craft Gossip

Independent craft blog since 2007

Review: STOMP! At Jupiters Casnio, Gold Coast

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Stomp review

STOMP takes the meaning of recycling to a whole new world of music and artistry. You will never look at your humble broom again in the same way. You will want to tap out beats while taking the rubbish bin out. You will want to make paper planes with the newspaper and amuse the kids. You will want to dig through the garbage and find something to make noise with. Umm.. maybe scratch that last one out. A day old garbage is not something that you want to hold .. or smell.

The toe tapping rhythm that the STOMP artists find carries through the crowds and in no time everyone is clapping and trying to keep up. There is a large level of audience participation. There is also a fairly clever gag running through the show that makes the whole show not only musical wizardry, but provides comic relief as well.

Some of the instruments used to create beautiful music defy logic. Whatever you do, don’t miss the trick with the lighters or the newspaper. Kids will love it (if they can keep quiet).

Speaking of kids, if you are going with little ones (less than 2 years old) make sure that you get aisle seats in case you need to make a quick exit if they start playing up. However, in a tribute to the show’s ability to keep kids amused, entertained and sitting still for around an hour, our 1.6 years old sat and watched the whole show in amazement. Occassinaly you could hear him say “man” loudly enough for everyone to hear during the quiet times of the show, but those quiet times were few and far between. Our 3 year old was thoroughly enthralled. We forgot she was there. Both kids want to see it again!

One sour note: When asked for some tap water from the bar staff at Jupiters Casino inside the theatre, I was refused. This is illegal in Queensland with fines ranging up to $4000. Bars must provide free tap water: http://www.olgr.qld.gov.au/stories/alcoholrelatedviolence2.shtml#7. You may want to take your own drinks to keep the kids hydrated.

What? STOMP at the Jupiter Casino, Gold Coast.

When? On now.

Tickets: At the Jupiters Box Office. From $59. You are better off combining a dinner and show package, which start at $69.

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Learning about Finland for Kids

Finland is a country in Northern Europe bordered by Sweden, Norway and Russia, as well as the Gulf of Finland and the Gulf of Bothnia. Let’s learn more about this Nordic country. 

Finland Basics

Finland is 130,678 square miles, or 338,455 square kilometers, and is home to about 5.7 million people. 

Its capital and largest city is Helsinki. The official languages are Finnish and Swedish.

The area now known as Finland was first settled around 9000 BC, and it was part of Sweden from the late 13th century until 1809, when it became an autonomous grand duchy within the Russian Empire. It declared independence in 1917 and it officially became a republic in 1919. It lost some territory to Russia after World War II but retained its independence.

It was the first country in Europe to grant its citizens universal suffrage, and the first in the world to allow all adult citizens to run for office. It is a Nordic style welfare state with an advanced economy and is often ranked as one of the countries with the happiest people in the world. 

It has a unitary parliamentary government, with a president and prime minister.

The name in Finnish is Suomi, and it’s not clear where the name came from but it seems to have a common original with the Sámi, indigenous people from the Nordic region and Russia. 

Finland National Symbols

The flag of Finland has a white background with a blue Nordic cross (which looks like a Christian cross on its side) in the center. It is said that the blue represents the nation’s thousands of lakes (there are more than 180,000 recorded lakes in the country) as well as the sky.

The national anthem, “Maamme” in Finnish or “Our Land” in English, was originally written for the 500th anniversary of the town of Porvoo and was first performed in 1848. The song is not officially the national anthem but has been commonly used as the anthem since the nation’s independence. Estonia‘s national anthem uses the same tune. 

Finland’s coat of arms is a crowned heraldic lion on a red field, with the right front leg replaced by a human arm holding a sword. He’s also standing on a sabre and surrounded by nine roses. 

The Eurasian brown bear is the national animal, and the Finnhorse is the national horse. Finland’s national insect is the seven-spot ladybird and the national fish is the European perch. 

Lily of the valley is a floral emblem of Finland, and their national dog is the Finnish Spitz. In addition, granite, the silver birch, the Whooper swan and the holly blue butterfly are all considered national symbols. (You can read about several of these here.)

Finland Learning Activities for Kids 

Grab resources for teaching about Finland from Teachers Pay Teachers. Artsy Craftsy Mom also has a printable fact book you can purchase.

Make a tape resist Finnish flag with this idea from taidekoti. Or use watercolors to make the Northern Lights, which can be seen in Finland, with this project from The Pinterested Parent. And learn more about the Aurora Borealis in this video from Little School.

Learn more about the boreal forest/taiga biome, which covers the majority of Finland, with this resource from Let’s Talk Science. Talk about the differences between brown bears and grizzly bears, and pull out horse crafts and learning activities. 

Take a listen to some music performed on the kantele, the national instrument of Finland. 

Check out the Moomins, described as “with and roundish trolls with large snouts,” developed by Finnish author and illustrator Tove Jansson.

The national food of Finland is rye bread, so give it a try with this recipe from Zingerman’s. (It will still be good even if you don’t have freshly milled rye.)