Take 5 with Robert Rhys Bond, one of the unhinged minds behind The Story Forge: Make Your Own Myth in our Barber Studio from 9-12 April.

1: Tell us a bit about your big daft show.

Very well! It’s true it is big and it is daft. It grew out of our mutual love of myths and legends and wanting to give our audience an invitation to adventure. It’s all about two Silly Professors who tour the country looking for new myths and legends. They’re fed up of soft reboots and terrible sequels so they’re off in their mini metro to find new legends. From you!

2: How does your young audience play a part in the storytelling?

They have a MASSIVE role; they are literally the hero! We get them up on stage fighting Hydras, traversing the nine realms and standing up to capricious gods. Kids tend to have better ideas than us too, so it gives us a breather.

3: Why is it important for children to express themselves creatively?

Silliness aside, the incredible imaginations and hilarious contributions of the young audiences are why we have done this show. Recently, some people in suits seem to have decided that drama lessons and activities for young people are not that important. But we are here to prove otherwise – and we’ve got a hammer!

Performance has been a brilliant force for good in our lives and if the show helps one young person find joy and confidence in myths and theatre then it will have been worth it.

4: Why have you opted for cardboard props? (Other than because they look weirdly cool.)

You know when you’re young and foolish and you get a new toy and you end up making the siege of Troy using the box the toy came in? Well, we’re trying to capture the spirit of that. And they’re all repurposed and recycled to protect the environment.

Also, it’s just a really cool look! The amazing props are like the show; works of art masquerading as mucking about!

5: When the non-existent curtain comes down, what conversations or actions do you hope your show prompts?

We hope people will want to gather round their own flickering campfires and tell their friends about their adventures. And then come again to the show with all their mates!

We want to sow a seed of confidence in our audiences. They should be so proud that they got up on that big stage and that it was their idea – and Thor’s cardboard hammer – that saved the day. We also hope to foster a love of new and original storytelling, especially in an age when children are reading less for pleasure.

But we will settle for “we had a great time and laughed loads”.