The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (Crescent Theatre)
This tale from C.S. Lewis is undoubtedly timeless and that makes it a challenge for every new production to be a bit different with some added audience appeal and the Crescent Theatre have managed that in a number of ways.
Firstly there is a striking set, deceptive in simplicity but, with sufficient nooks, crannies and hidden rooms to house all the relevant scenes from the house of Mr Tumnus the Faun to Aslan's Camp, a triumph of design from Ruth Collins and her Set Team.
Secondly an array of stunning costumes attributable to some top rate design from Jennet Marshall and her Costume Team.
Thirdly some innovative directing from Alan K. Marshall, not least of all an opening scene with all the characters from Narnia as human alternatives in a country war-time railway station montage. Equally the use of children dressed in white as Snow Spirits, although the audience is never quite sure whether they are on the side of the White Witch or not.
Finally some superlative stagecraft from an extensive cast, many of which deserve individual mention, including a piercingly scary Nikky Brady as the White Witch, endearingly engaging Josh Scott and Pat Dixon as Mr & Mrs Beaver, Jacob Williams as delightfully understated Mr Tumnus and a commanding performance as Aslan from Andrew Lowrie.
Leading the acting talent however are some notably talented youngsters in Sam Wilson (Peter), Molly Wood (Susan), Jason Timmington (a highly mischievous Edmund) and an outstanding performance as Lucy by Charlotte Upton. All four have mastered the art of stage interaction and were one not aware that this is performance art (let alone a fantasy story), one might have believed that they were real brother and sisters with all the family knowledge that would require.
Attracting the viewing public in a city like Birmingham which has numerous venues is hard and it is shows like this that allow the smaller venues to survive so book some tickets while you can as the run ends on Saturday 16th December 2018.
Book Here
Firstly there is a striking set, deceptive in simplicity but, with sufficient nooks, crannies and hidden rooms to house all the relevant scenes from the house of Mr Tumnus the Faun to Aslan's Camp, a triumph of design from Ruth Collins and her Set Team.
Secondly an array of stunning costumes attributable to some top rate design from Jennet Marshall and her Costume Team.
Thirdly some innovative directing from Alan K. Marshall, not least of all an opening scene with all the characters from Narnia as human alternatives in a country war-time railway station montage. Equally the use of children dressed in white as Snow Spirits, although the audience is never quite sure whether they are on the side of the White Witch or not.
Finally some superlative stagecraft from an extensive cast, many of which deserve individual mention, including a piercingly scary Nikky Brady as the White Witch, endearingly engaging Josh Scott and Pat Dixon as Mr & Mrs Beaver, Jacob Williams as delightfully understated Mr Tumnus and a commanding performance as Aslan from Andrew Lowrie.
Leading the acting talent however are some notably talented youngsters in Sam Wilson (Peter), Molly Wood (Susan), Jason Timmington (a highly mischievous Edmund) and an outstanding performance as Lucy by Charlotte Upton. All four have mastered the art of stage interaction and were one not aware that this is performance art (let alone a fantasy story), one might have believed that they were real brother and sisters with all the family knowledge that would require.
Attracting the viewing public in a city like Birmingham which has numerous venues is hard and it is shows like this that allow the smaller venues to survive so book some tickets while you can as the run ends on Saturday 16th December 2018.
Book Here
Comments
Post a Comment