Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes

Roald Dahl’s Revolting Rhymes are a set of the famous author’s witty and often darker takes on famous nursery rhymes and fairy stories. This musical version, by Matthew White and Ana Sanderson (with orchestral music by Paul Patterson) was expertly undertaken by The Bradfordians covered the stories of ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ in Act 1 and ‘The Three Little Pigs’ in Act 2.

The production was a truly enchanting delight from start to finish. A terrific and magical atmosphere was generated right from the opening scene. We were guided through the production by the two Story Tellers, engagingly played and sung by Rachael Courage and Sarah Smart. There was some great detail here – I loved the ‘magic’ dust that sparkled as the story book was opened and the pages blown.  The set assisted with the magic here too. St Margaret’s Hall has a tight floor-based set-area, which expert use was made of. The set ‘folded out’ from a giant story book and the ‘pop out’ tree (to allow an access point from the back) was genius. There was terrific detail when the book pages turned again for the inside of Granny’s House. The two trucks used for Granny’s bed and for the 3rd Pig’s ‘house of bricks’ in Act 2 were also most impressive. The lighting complete the atmosphere and was generally terrific. There was some delightful colouring (particularly the use of red for some of the grimmer moments) and side and back light was used to great effect to build the spooky shapes of the forest through the use of gobos and haze. For some part of scenes it may have been a little too dark, though this is sometimes a consequence of trying to generate the right atmosphere.

The costumes and make up were fantastic and genuinely quite breath-taking. With most cast members as animals, there were some great facial make-up and some excellent human costumes to match the character of the animals. The detail was excellent and very well-done across the board. The stage area was also very well-used. Entrance and exits were imaginative and varied. To complete the ‘eating’ scenes up the centre aisle, out of view of all of the audience was a clever touch. I liked the use of the audience and interaction for some parts, with some characters moving up and down the raked stairway, without ever going into ‘Panto’ mode.

The music, supplied by backing track was all new to me (and probably most the audience), but was appealing enough, well-sung, timed and performed. With no musical number details given in the programme, it is tricky to name them, though ‘Don’t Stray from the Woods’, ‘Granny’s Song’ and ‘Wheeler Dealer Piggy’ were particular highlights for me. The movement and choreography were also very well done.  I liked the use of tap with Red Riding Hood to show-off the Actress’s talent in this area. I also enjoyed the excellent and effective movement for the chorus at the start of Act 2. The chorus movement used for the house of straw and twigs (when the wolf blew them away) also looked really effective and was timed really well.

This was a great ensemble piece. Ian Pritchard, Helen Sanders and Tina Scudder are all established performers and did not disappoint as the 3 pigs – building some great characters for each in both Acts.  Kat Cooper made a great little Red Riding Hood and obviously greatly enjoyed the twist given to the character by Dahl in both Acts! There was a delightful cameo for Dee Way as ‘Granny’.  Phil Courage made a great Wolf too. He was able to combine both the charm and the nastier side of the character and sang and moved very well.  The ensemble of animals played by some of the younger members of the Society were a particular highlight for me. There was a lot for them to do here – some tricky vocal arrangements, complex directions and movements and the need to do all of this in the character and style of their animal. The level of detail and quality of performance here was excellent and very impressive and bodes well for the Society’s future.

Overall, this was a terrific and well-executed production, which Aled and I enjoyed very much. It made completing a show report very easy! Congratulations to Kate, Felicity and the whole team. This production maintains and builds uoon The Bradfordians’ excellent reputation and we wish you every success with your future productions.  

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