By Amy Winder

As the audience arrived to watch ‘The Polar Bear (is Dead)’ we were shown through to Wakefield Word Fest’s Enchanted Forest display. Lit in forest tones and bursting with art, it was the perfect atmosphere to relax in and appreciate, while we awaited a performance with the theme of the climate crisis threaded throughout.

The show, performed by Natalie Bellingham and Daniele Pennati and produced by SJ Watkinson was clearly made up by a group of people who know how to make the best of any situation. With Daniele performing from over in Italy, the show was crafted so that he could move between screens, backgrounds and costumes in a way which felt both natural and exciting.

Dressed as a polar bear, Natalie guided us through different aspects of the performance, from chats with Daniele as herself to passionate dancing as a polar bear, from questionable interpretations of the physiology of a giraffe to a recording of a chat with her mum. The whole thing was clever, witty and poignant.

It is a show that very easily could have felt like disconnected parts, but a strength of Natalie’s performance was she always made a point of including the audience in her performance, not only in her speeches to us, but also in her conversations with Daniele over zoom, and even in the text message conversation between the polar bear and Sudan the white rhino.

One of the lines in the show description is “Have you ever thought about what it means to lose something forever?” and, yes, this is a show about loss. It talks about grief, climate change and – ever present in the pandemic era – one of the performers is calling in on zoom. Even the fluffy polar bear costume head has an expression which might be described as mournful. And yet throughout, Natalie and Daniele maintain a sense of hope in the energy of the show. It’s filled with joy, energy and connection.

If you’re reading this on 27th October, you can still book your tickets for tonight’s shows here.