Hansel and Gretel

Take a walled garden setting, a twist on the conventional narrative of a much-loved fairy tale, and a cast dominated by enthusiastic children and teens, and all the elements were in place for a charming entertainment suitable for theatre’s very youngest audiences. 

Brandon’s Shoestring Theatre Company has about 10 children/teen members and fewer adult members, all of whom participated in an hour-long production of Hansel and Gretel that they staged four times on a single June day. The setting was the lovely walled garden of Brandon Country Park, a rather magical place all on its own.  

The action was split between two separate open areas, one where the Woodcutter’s home and the Scary Woods were located, and the other the location for the gingerbread house and a cauldron. The audience travelled between the two, which allowed a welcome chance to move around a bit. However, people with mobility issues and the little kiddies in attendance may have been less delighted to follow this ‘progressive’ theatre around rain-soaked garden paths.

This version of Hansel and Gretel turned the convention of the evil stepmother on its head. The stepmother in this rendition is the kindly Martha, who bakes cakes and buys presents for her stepchildren. However, an evil Witch comes on the scene, dispatches Martha down a well, steals her clothes and pretends to Martha’s new husband the Woodcutter and stepchildren Hansel and Gretel that Martha has had ‘a nip and a tuck’, explaining away her new facial appearance. 

The new Martha/Witch turns out to be the younger sister of the Old Lady who wants to fatten up Hansel and Gretel for the kill at her gingerbread cottage and eat them. Left to her wicked devices, the Witch pretending to be Martha leads the youngsters along a woody path to the greedy clutches of her sister. 

Of course, all ends well with a new assortment of characters – a Troll, a Huntsman, a Professor, Police and a Prince – on hand to help or hinder the search for Hansel and Gretel. 

A more purely excited cast would be hard to find. Especially exuberant was Amber Smith as Gretel with Melanie Attwood as Hansel a nicely lower-key foil for her overwrought ‘sister’. As the Witch-turned-Martha, Amy Clifton delivered a nicely-tuned performance that hinted at a considerable talent waiting to be tapped. Leah Sanders was a charming and twinkly-eyed Prince, who swashbuckles in near the end to save the day. Kacy Harrington was a sweetly confident ‘real’ Martha. 

In the respective roles of the Professor, Huntsman, Troll, various Police and the wicked Old Lady, actors Kaitlyn Hunt, Mollie McMullan, Matthew Hargreaves, Chloe Hunt, Joanne Hargreaves (very smiley!). Izzie McDonald and Mia McDonald, exuded pure enjoyment of their moments onstage.  

 Adult performer Denise Maxim as the Storyteller crisply kept the action going with both her scripted narrative and her prompting of the other performers. Fellow adult performers Jonty Blackwell and Daniel Wilcox as the Postman, who directed, offered amiable warmth in their characterisations.

The imagination at work in this small company was evident. Most impressive were Jill Blanchard’s exquisite costumes – the Witch’s glittery black gown and the Storyteller’s elegant coat were top examples. The gingerbread house was clearly painted by Jackie Challis with love and dedication, and a cauldron by Jill and Ted Blanchard that actually emitted bubbles that wafted into the audience was an unexpected treat.

A warm front-of-house team offered friendly greetings to all patrons, and Storyteller Denise Maxim ensured that the smallest audience members were always right in front to see the action. Well done. 

The one nagging criticism of this production is that many actors, adult and youth, suffered from an unfortunate lack of familiarity with their lines. In one case, one actor alone onstage had to repeat an entrance cue line several times before the missing (adult) performer showed up. 

Small can be beautiful, and this cute little production had some beautiful moments.

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