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. The Bradfordians last performed stories from this series in 2016 I believe, which I was also fortunate enough to report upon. This time, the stories of ‘Cinderella’ (by Helen MacGregor and Stephen Chadwick, with orchestral music by Vladimir Tarnopolski) in Act 1 and ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’ (by Matthew White and Ana Sanderson with orchestral music by Georgs Pelecis)  in Act 2 were presented and the production did not disappoint.

A nice atmosphere was generated on arrival with an open set fireplace, mysterious haze and atmospheric lighting effects. Rachel Courage returned as the Narrator and her energy and enthusiasm carried and linked the production through. She was ably assisted by the Narrator’s Child.

We were also treated to another clever set from Jerome Way and Phil Courage that made the best of the small floor-based working area and limited wing space in the venue. The ‘Fold -out’ set to transform Cinder’s home into the Prince’s Palace worked well. Cinderella’s coach was great fun too. In Act 2, the set was converted into a rotating form for the Beanstalk to grow and climb and the Giant to appear from. The Giant himself was great – including the moving eyes, nose and mouth. The stage area was also very well-used. Entrance and exits were imaginative and varied and included action around the auditorium. The audience interactions were well judged too, including the new husband for Cinderella! There were some real technical highlights - Cinderella’s spinning transformation was particularly impressive. The ‘head-chopping’ scene was cleverly staged too.

Some realty nice lighting effects and colourings were created in both Acts, really enhancing the action. There was a really good use of Ultra Violet with the Beanstalk. The rotary lighting to assist with Cinderella’s transformation was excellent.  There were a few lighting coverage dead-spots, particularly at the start of the show and the LED lighting didn’t help some of the smooth transitions desired. However, overall the lighting was very good. The sound generally ran very well too. Radio microphones were used for the principals, so we were able to hear everything. There was a nice effect created for the Giant’s voice. Occasionally some of the sound was a bit echoey, but this is a difficult venue for sound and so this was very well done overall.

Costumes and make up were great. The show gave lots of opportunities for variety, from ball-dresses to all the Fairy-tale character costumes. I particularly liked the Rat costumes and the invention used for the Ugly Sisters.

Georgiana Snelling’s choreography worked well. It was good fun throughout and suitable for both the younger and older members to successfully complete and look very effective. Really well done!

The music, supplied by backing track was all new to me (and probably most the audience), but was catchy, well-sung, timed and performed.  ‘Smelly Feet Blues’ and ‘Man in the Moon’ were two of my favourites.

This really felt like a production to promote and make the very most of the youth in the Society with some guiding hands on stage and this worked well. The energy, enthusiasm as maturity of the younger members of the Society were a real highlight for me. They were always performing, always in character and always giving their best, which I loved. This was a great ensemble piece. There were many nice individual performances on stage too – with a good turn from Tom Schönfeld as the Prince and Jack’s Mum and Caroline Murray and Tina Scudder really made the best of their parts as the Ugly Sisters. Georgiana Snelling put together a very nice Cinderella and Jack was great too, with a nice performance and some even nicer facial expressions!

The 11am production I attended was full of children and young people and the proof of success was in their reaction. The performance had the magic to hold their full attention and they and the rest of  the audience loved it. This was a great, well-executed production, which Aled and I enjoyed very much. It made completing this show report very easy! Congratulations to Kate, Georgiana and the whole team. This production maintains the Bradfordians’ excellent reputation and we wish you every success with your future productions.  

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