I can't exactly remember when I first came across the lovely folks from Bazil Grumble, and their wonderful, imaginative workshops for kids.
Maybe it was when my older son started school and we got a flyer about Bazil Grumble drama workshops being run one afternoon a week in the school hall. We couldn't attend those, but, gee, they sure sounded great.
Or perhaps it was when Bazil Grumble ran pottery workshops one school holidays at the Brisbane Powerhouse. My younger son went along and had a great time, hand-moulding and spinning clay on the potter's wheel.
I know we were definitely familiar with them by the time we saw that they were running a paper-plane workshop a couple of years ago, again at the Powerhouse, and my older son begged to go (he's a paper-plane fanatic). He went along and spent an hour or so with Grant, Bazil Grumble's origami expert, and had a blast learning ever-more-complicated designs.
Our most recent Bazil Grumble encounter was a free paper-plane workshop at
Oriel Park in Ascot last weekend. This time I thought to take along my camera so I could get some pics and tell you all about Bazil Grumble's kids' activities, including free workshops that are currently running courtesy of Brisbane City Council.
Basically, Bazil Grumble is a local company run by Fiona Bazley Hodges and Grant Hodges. They do lots of things for kids, including drama classes, face-painting, and a wide range of art workshops (pottery, mask-making, animation, clowning, puppetry, juggling, and more). They're fun, they're friendly, they know their stuff, and my boys have enjoyed every activity they've done with them.
In a bonus for Brisbane residents, Brisbane City Council has contracted Bazil Grumble to run a series of free activities in parks over the coming months. While many are aimed at kids, some are also suitable for adults and others encourage children to attend with a grandparent or other family members.
Coming up in March are clay critters in New Farm Park, mini-me movers and shakers at Kalinga Park in Clayfield, and juggle-a-rama at TJ Doyle Memorial Park in Dutton Park -- just to mention a few. All are absolutely free, and activities keep running into April in suburbs including Bulimba, Heathwood, Stafford and Carina.
For more info or to register for one of the free park activities, visit the
Bazil Grumble website.
You can also check the website for other Bazil Grumble activities being run after-school or during school holidays. While there will be a fee for those, I've always found the cost to be reasonable and the quality to be well worth the price.
