The 2021 Family Prom takes place on Sunday 29 August, with two performances at 2.30pm and 7pm.
This year’s carnival themed musical extravaganza will be performed by the seven Kanneh-Mason siblings and friends. The programme will open with ‘Revel’, a new piece by Daniel Kidane, narrated by Lemn Sissay, which explores the sounds and rhythms of the Manchester Caribbean Carnival. Following on from that will be Saint-Saëns’s The Carnival of the Animals with new poems written and narrated by Michael Morpurgo. The Prom has been devised and scripted by Sian Ní Mhuirí and actor EM Williams will play the role of Saba as they experience a day of fun at the carnival and a day at home in the world of their imagination.
To help families get in the carnival spirit, BBC Proms Learning have commissioned a set of online creative activities inspired by Carnival of the Animals for families to try out at home. Produced in collaboration with arts and charitable organisations across the UK, activities include ‘dance around the aquarium’ with Strictly’s Janette Manrara and Step Change Studios, and ‘craft a cuckoo poem’ with Mandy Coe and Z-arts.
Audiences attending the Prom or tuning in at home are encouraged to dress up as their favourite animal, and there is an animal mask making activity hosted by Ricky Martin (CBBC’s Art Ninja) available online, together with a Carnival Celebration online showcase where photos of the creations can be uploaded.