WHAT is expected to be a beautiful piece of theatre, combining stunning intricate puppetry and music with the true tale of local wildlife, is hoping to enchant and educate a multitude of Southend audiences.

The story - The Lost Leigh Goose - is based on the story of the migration of a Dark-Bellied Brent Goose from the Arctic Circle, to the south Essex coast. A preview of the production in its first stages of development is open to the public, to take place at the Clifftown Theatre next week.

It is the first project for the fledgling Wild Story Theatre company, founded in 2017 by experienced theatre practitioner, singer, puppeteer and actor Elaine Hartley.

Elaine has a great background in working within puppet theatre, training with in ancient Japanese art of Bunraku and having co-founded a puppet theatre company Flabbergast, which went on to tour the world with its adult comedy show, gaining a multitude of five star reviews and credible accolades including being named the number one show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

She has also toured with hit shows aimed at children and teenagers, including CBeebies' Octagons and In the Night Garden.

Although being from London, Elaine has been living for the past three years in Leigh, following her marriage to a local man Dylan Tate.

The ethos of Wild Story Theatre, she explains, is to "create wild and wonderful tales based on local wildlife, history and folklore across Essex, creating theatre that is relevant and exciting for Essex residents and involving community groups in the creative process".

The Lost Leigh Goose is a magical heartwarming tale set around the fact that every year 4,000 Dark Bellied Brent Geese migrate 2500 miles from northern Siberia to the south Essex coast, in search of warmth, mudflats and delicious eelgrass they love to eat.

Wild Story Theatre wants to educate people of all ages about this incredible journey and the rare goose that loves Southend, in this magical heartwarming theatre adventure that follows one little lost goose who gets left behind and must make the journey alone.

Elaine says: "These geese are a treasure among locals in Southend and the company wants to celebrate them with a story about their magnificent

journey, educating families about the geese and spreading awareness of this rare bird that is now on red UK conservation status."

Elaine says she will combine her experience of entertaining a wide age range of audiences, to appeal to them all.

"It's so great to collaborate with local groups also, to learn the best ways to represent the landscape and make the puppets so that they move really well" she added.

The Wild Story Theatre project has been supported by Southend arts charity organisation Metal Culture, providing the company with a residency period to enable them to develop the play with actors, puppeteers and musicians.

Wild Story Theatre also plans to run a number of creative workshops for children and community groups alongside the project to engage with as many people as they can.

Colette Bailey, artistic director and chief executive of Metal Culture, said: “Wild Story Theatre’s Time and Space application particularly caught my attention as it engages with the unique local environment of the Thames Estuary and the relevant and current topics of migration, belonging and community.

"It will be a show that will have a wide appeal to all ages and we look forward to helping to bring this great work to audiences in Southend and beyond.”

The work-in-progress showing of The Lost Leigh Goose will be performed at Clifftown Theatre, Nelson Mews, Southend at 4pm, on Saturday January 27.

Following this first showcase, the theatre company aims to gain support, creative ideas from community groups, and investment to enable them to fully produce the show in late 2018 and early 2019 at a theatre venue.

Mark Nowers of the RSPB, which is supporting the theatre company says: "We hope that Elaine’s story-telling of their incredible migration will inspire people to go and see these amazing birds and do whatever they can to protect them."