Interview: Producer Jamie Chapman Dixon on BLIPPI THE WONDERFUL WORLD TOUR
Following the success of the 2023 Olivier Award nominated UK debut show, Blippi: The Musical, Round Room Live and Moonbug Entertainment with Carter Dixon McGill Productions have announced a new live show, Blippi: The Wonderful World Tour, which sees the return of the vivacious, energetic, and educational antics of global sensation Blippi to stages across the UK. We spoke to producer Jamie Chapman Dixon about taking the show on the road.
For those who may not know, who is Blippi and how have they become an international superstar?
Blippi was originally created as a YouTube character and has since grown to become a worldwide phenomenon receiving over 1 billion views per month across the world.
How did you come across Blippi and get involved in bringing them to the UK stage?
During Covid, my sister constantly told us on our family zoom calls that my nephew was becoming more and more obsessed with the Youtube show. Seeing as I had some time on my hands with the industry being closed, I contacted the owners of the brand and the rest is history!
What does the process of taking a kids TV show and putting it on stage look like?
There are a lot of moving parts when it comes to a show like Blippi. The brand is so big that there are a lot of people across the world to get involved with certain decisions. It is a great feeling as we have so much support from all our partners.
What challenges come from taking a family production on tour compared to staging it in the West End?
The logistics become that bit more complicated along with additional costs that you just don’t have in a sit-down run. Ensuring that the show goes to venues in the correct order to avoid additional haulage costs and making sure we give the entire country the opportunity to see the brand.
This is the second Blippi stage show. What new things have you and the team brought to this production?
I loved our original production in the West End but Blippi’s Wonderful World takes the brand to a whole new level. The show is bigger, brighter and even more energetic ( I know right, who thought that could be possible!)
What do you think made the first Blippi so popular and eventually become an Olivier award nominated show?
The only way to describe it is Blippi is the equivalent of Harry Styles for kids. The following is huge and we have had to break up many a children’s mosh pit.
How important is it that there is a strong provision of high quality family entertainment in our theatres across the UK and beyond?
Blippi and other children’s titles are the perfect entry point into live theatre for those of a young age. We need to continue to develop our audiences which makes these shows so vital to the industry and can be under appreciated.
Why should parents bring their children to see this show (and what might the parents get out of it?!)
We find that most parents end up staring and videoing their kids the entire time as they want to capture how happy they are in that moment. But we also all know that the parents love Blippi as much as their kids!
Blippi The Wonderful World Tour opens in Glasgow on 8 July and tours until September, with further information here.