Running at the same time as the play in the big theatre this Christmas is a show in the new studio theatre for young people. The two shows have surprising similarities. Towards the end of his story Mr. Scrooge is told off by his friend Belle for not using his imagination and becoming a nasty person as a result. In Chloe and the Colour Catcher Chloe, with the help of Grandma Magenta, finds out that by using her imagination she can make the world a better place. You see Chloe and her grey cat, Smokey – in truth a puppet cleverly made from a head and a separate tail – live in a world that has had all the colour taken out of it by the Colour Catcher so everything has become grey. At Chloe’s school the children are taught by Greynesty who tries to make them believe that the only colour they need in their lives is… yes, grey. Anybody who says otherwise or even mentions another colour is put in the transparification machine which sucks the colour from things and can make them invisible. Mummies and Daddies were reminded of a country called North Korea (and one or two other places in the world) where people aren’t allowed to be themselves and do what they want.

Now one night Chloe has a dream and in the dream Smokey has become a yellow cat. It’s the first time Chloe has ever seen another colour and it makes her feel so wonderful and warm and sparkly. She can’t wait to tell everybody about her dream, but they all tell her not to be so naughty and as punishment Greynesty makes her hand become invisible by putting it into the transparification machine. However Grandma Magenta explains to Chloe that the colour she saw in her dream comes from her imagination and that her invisible hand is invisible only because she is afraid to use it – her imagination that is, not her hand. So by trying very, very hard to use her imagination she makes her hand become visible again.

The Colour Catcher, who has a huge head, is very angry with Chloe. Grandma Magenta however, has a plan to chase away the Colour Catcher and asks all the boys and girls in the audience to become Rainbow Rebels. Everybody is given a coloured ball and at a special sign they all throw the balls at the Colour Catcher who is chased away forever.

All the people in the show are very clever at acting and singing. They all move like dancers and make lovely big movements that are easy to understand. Greynesty is horrid, but also very funny and everyone laughed a lot when her grey hair was turned into blue. The grown ups had almost as much fun watching the children squealing with delight at some of the things that happened in the show.

If you’ve only just started school or have only been there for two or three years I’m sure you will really enjoy Chloe and the Colour Catcher. Christmas time is a very special time of year and lots of people have their first ever trip to the theatre to see a Christmas show. And if you love this brilliant show perhaps mummy and daddy will take you to see something else at the theatre.

★★★★☆    Graham Wyles   6^th December 2018