by Madness of Two

Drama | Personal and Social Capability

Claire Della and the Moon is a gentle powerful theatre work for young audiences that uses metaphor, music, puppetry and striking visual design to explore mental health in an accessible and emotionally resonant way. 

Claire Della doesn’t quite fit in. The world feels too loud, too fast, too confusing – a place which doesn’t understand her and which she doesn’t understand. So, Claire builds a ladder and retreats to the quiet, lonely safety of the Moon. There, she meets Laika – a bold, brash space dog with a complicated past – and the two form an unlikely friendship. But when Claire’s link back to Earth is broken, the pair must work together to help her find her way home. 

At its core, the story is about learning to sit with difficult feelings, asking for help, and reconnecting with the world around you. Claire’s journey is not about being “fixed,” but about finding balance – acknowledging that sadness and joy can coexist. 

Claire Della and the Moon was created by award winning theatre makers Ellen Graham and Jamie Hornsby, in close consultation with child psychologist Simon Andrews. From the outset, the goal was to create a show that supported young people in navigating their emotional lives without resorting to clinical or stigmatising language or overt messaging. The play won two AWGIE Awards from the Australian Writers’ Guild, including the David Williamson Prize for Excellence in Writing for Australian Theatre, and has toured to major festivals and regional communities across South Australia and Western Australia. 

With rich puppetry, poetic language, an original score, and dynamic physical performance, Claire Della and the Moon provides a vivid, sensory experience for students across the entire school age range – with a particular focus on years 4-7. The use of metaphor makes the emotional themes approachable for younger audiences and relatable for neurodiverse students, while still offering depth and complexity for older students. We’ve had audience members of all ages and consistently receive fantastic feedback about the show’s thematic resonance, humour and heart. 

In the classroom, the show provides springboards for a wide range of curriculum connections. It supports the Personal and Social Capability of the Victorian Curriculum by encouraging empathy, emotional literacy, and self-awareness. It also offers opportunities for interdisciplinary exploration – the story of Laika introduces topics around space history, animal ethics, and storytelling through a historical lens. 

Post-show workshops are available and can be tailored to suit specific classroom needs. These sessions explore creative writing, devising, and the use of metaphor to express emotional truths – building both creative and emotional literacy. 

Ultimately, Claire Della and the Moon is a beautiful and imaginative invitation for students to think, feel, reflect, and connect – with themselves, with each other, and with the world around them. 

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