Over half of Mexico's children live below the poverty line. This level especially high in rural areas and amongst indigenous populations. Around 2.5 million children and teenagers work, often in dangerous activities, such as construction or industrial labor, night shifts, or other jobs in which they are in contact with chemicals or other hazardous material. They often cannot go to school and access to the arts is often non-existent.

This is why, this summer, we at Wind-Up Penguin are sharing a new music theatre performance with children in orphanages, slums, NGOs, and special needs centres in Southern Mexico. Our team is made up of students from the Guildhall School and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, two of the most outstanding performance colleges in the world.

We believe every child on this planet should have access to the crucial elements of a healthy childhood: laughter, stories, games, and a safe space to play and be creative.

This project will bring music and theatre to around 1400 children in vulnerable communities. We also aim to reach some of the Central American migrants making their way through Mexico to the USA. At a time when the western world is showing them messages of walls and hostility, Wind-Up Penguin want to bring a dose of friendship and laughter.

Our company is run entirely by students and recent graduates. We fund and fundraise for these projects ourselves, which is why we're asking for YOUR help now.

Any donation, even the most modest, will help enormously towards covering the necessary costs for us to share music and theatre. Every pound you donate will allow two vulnerable children to watch live theatre with highly accomplished musicians and actors. They will also partake in a workshop where they will learn songs, play theatre games and have a moment to escape from the world in which they are often forced to grow up much too quickly.

Thank you! Daisy, Bianca, Caleb, Zoe, Daniel and Ed