Super Nan is the first play Norris has produced for children for more than 10 years.
"Having my own grandchildren now, I've started introducing them to theatre. I saw a play with my 5-year-old grandchild and it completely reinvigorated me about children's theatre," she said yesterday.
"It's such a pleasure, as a grandparent, to take your grandchild to live theatre. It's such a bonding experience.
"Theatre is a magic place. It's a fun and exciting place they can be transported to and it teaches them how important imagination is. Imagination is so powerful and, often, we don't give it enough credence."
Super Nan, which opened at the Fortune yesterday,would appeal to young people of all ages, Ms Norris said.
"It's a very bright and colourful play, with two-dimensional props like a cartoon. It's silly and funny and has a lot of interaction with the audience.
"It's so important that children's plays are exciting and visual and really grab young people. We've got to make sure children's theatre is just as good as adult's theatre," she said.
The script has been adapted to Dunedin by Christchurch playwright Carl Nixon.
"It's about a young boy, called Josh, who thinks old people are really boring.
"He's got a superhero who does daring deeds called 'Super Nan' and it becomes their mission to stop an evil dentist who's trying to destroy all the chocolate in Dunedin.
"Along the way, Josh realises his grandma is a much more exciting character than he thought."
