Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Vale Royal Youth Theatre brought the beloved story of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to life at the Harlequin Theatre. The show should be filled with magic and wonder but unfortunately this production didn’t quite hit the mark. However, there were some stand out elements which I enjoyed. Directed by Jan Bason, the cast understood the need for good blocking on stage, with awareness for the other cast members around them on stage. The show contains a lot of comedic lines throughout however a lot of them did not land unfortunately. The delivery of them was either not fully understood by the actors or was not timed right. During the tour of the Chocolate Factory, groups of cast members were often placed near the back, presumably to look like they were working, however this was not what came across to the audience as they didn’t have direction on what they should be doing during these scenes. The effects using during the scenes where the children depart the factory one by one were lacking in pace and energy. In particular Mike Teavee’s scene – the same video was playing on the back screen for a long time. I would have liked to have seen this changed up a bit to hold the audiences attention and add some variety to the scene.

In terms of set, the production was quite simple with most locations portrayed by projections. The projections themselves were really vibrant and looked great! However the timing of them wasn’t quite right throughout – they were often changed too early. There were also brick pillars, a bed for the grandparents and a sweet shop exterior to add to some of the different settings. I liked the placement of the bed and it allowed the scenes to be separated from others earlier in the show. Sweet stands were also a prominent feature within the earlier parts of the production, with the Wonka bars removed from them when they are sold out – this was a really nice touch. I also liked the use of different pieces of candy stuck to the walls on both sides in Act 2. This added a lot of colour to create a nice aesthetic. The use of spotlights also complimented elements of the production well.

Throughout this show, microphones were only used when the cast were singing and not for dialogue. This unfortunately made the production feel disjointed in regards to sound as the levels were consistently changing. A lot of dialogue was missed throughout, either from music being too loud for the cast to talk over or from low levels of projection. Some of the bigger voices within the cast did have their mics turned on for singing, but they were too loud so became distorted when performing some of the more “belty” sections.

Jack Rawlinson took on the role of Willy Wonka and performed with a flawless accent throughout. I would have liked to see more light and dark to the character and a bit more of an erratic nature, that being said, Jack played Wonka’s indifference towards the children and parents within the factory very well.

Charlie Bucket was played by Logan Gormley who gave a confident and convincing performance for the most part. There were times when the dialogue was too quiet and quick for the audience to understand. Playing Charlie’s Grandpa Joe was Joey Crowder. Joey gave a great performance, filled with energy and great physicality. He performed with a good pace throughout and built a good relationship with Charlie.

Isabella Whitehead and George McDonald played Mrs Gloop and her son, Augustus Gloop. Both gave strong performances with stand out vocals within this production. Their energy was brilliant throughout along with their commitment to their roles. The pair worked really well together and were very funny – I was very impressed with their accents!

Veruca Salt was played by Daisy Martin who displayed excellent dance skills along with impeccable timing during “When Veruca Says”. She showed good levels of volume throughout. I would have liked to have seen the more bratty side to the character come out more, with less smiles, but nonetheless this was a good performance from Daisy.

Mia Taylor-Hole played Violet Beauregarde and was bursting with energy from start to finish! She kept up her volume and vocals throughout the show, along with her full commitment to the character. Her stage presence and reactions were spot on!

Mike Teavee and Mrs Teavee were played by George Bancroft and Katlin Rimmer. George played the role of Mike well, consistently keeping up with his disinterest in the outside world. Katlin showed stunning vocals in her portrayal of Mrs Teavee, and did well to play the fussing, over protective mother of Mike.

I must also give mention to Hattie Ford who played Mrs Green, the vegetable seller. This performance was so deadpan yet so hilarious – Hattie really won the audience over!

The ensemble for this production did well for the most part, most notably in the scene where Violet turns violet. They gave their all during this section and displayed good vocals. The children and parents also showed great reactions when they first entered the Chocolate Factory – this was a lovely moment to watch. The choreography (by Catherine Fisher and Shelley Fisher) throughout was well catered to the abilities of the cast, with some nice full ensemble moments. However, some of the numbers lacked energy and precision from the ensemble dancers. Some of the dialogue throughout was delivered too quickly, meaning the cast were moving ahead of the backing tracks and had to wait for their next cue. I did enjoy the attention to detail in some of the costumes – the stand out being the matching socks for the grandparents!

Overall, this was an enjoyable production but unfortunately the technical elements did let it down. Some more polishing in certain areas (for example tech and execution of choreography) would have brought up the production to a more slick and streamlined standard.

Thank you to Vale Royal Youth Theatre for their invite to the show and I wish them the best of luck with their future productions.

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