Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without Scrooge, and I suppose when it comes to Christmas theatre, I can become a bit Scrooge-y; I have no patience for pantomime – give me a nice true-to-the-book adaptation of A Christmas Carol, and I’ll be happy, but try throwing in some ‘O, yes, you did’, ‘O, no, I didn’t!’ banter and I’m out of there.
For their Christmas show, Creation Theatre tends to eschew pantomime, while still choosing something family-friendly. I very much enjoyed last year’s production of The Wind in the Willows, where they managed to tread the line between childish silliness and warm nostalgia perfectly. However, over the past year, the company has been veering more towards the childish side of things in some of their productions, such as in this summer’s Midsummer Night’s Dream, and now in their winter production, Snow White and Other Tales from the Brothers Grimm, both pantomimes in disguise.
Now, I’m aware that I’m not the target audience for this kind of show, so let’s put my reservations on that front to the side for the moment. I think the best thing about this production is (as usual) the visuals. Walking into the theatre feels like stepping into some kind of otherworld – there are lights everywhere, trees sprout up the railings and across the balconies, the seats are grouped around little tables like a tea party. The effect is magical, and when the performance starts, the costumes and props don’t disappoint – Creation tend towards a steampunk feel with their costumes, and the creative team have had a lot of fun with this production. The actors dance from fairytale to fairytale with speedy costume changes and lots of high energy movement across the whole auditorium (the play is performed in the round, with a mini stage on either side).
I wonder if maybe this type of production will be a little lost on younger children. As last night was press night, the audience was comprised mainly of adults, so it was hard to gauge, but as the action moves swiftly from story to story, often breaking off from one to start another, returning to the original tale later in the play, I’m not sure that it will be easy for a small child to follow the narrative. Probably slightly older children will have a good time, and the actors certainly play to that demographic with somewhat juvenile comedy, which occasionally hits its mark, and awkward dance breaks, which are hard to watch (or understand why they’re necessary).
The actors are always full of energy, and must be commended for their range of accents and characters (more so than in a normal production where they might only play one or two characters). The telling of multiple stories allows them to experiment with character, and they definitely feel like they’re having a lot of fun. I especially enjoyed the performances from the younger actors, who played dwarfs and enthusiastically supported the cast in the latter parts of the play. This must be a really fun opportunity to start off a career in the performing arts.
All in all, this play wasn’t for me, but if your kids are 8 or so, they’ll probably find it a lot of fun. Besides, it can never hurt to introduce children to the Grimm tales early on! ★★★☆☆ (if you like panto…) @BookingAround 5th December 2016
