The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe

Based on the much loved novel by C.S Lewis, this beautiful musical adaptation was magically brought to life by a talented cast of young performers aged 7-16. It was lovely to see some familiar faces but also a large number of new members too.

 

From the moment we entered the auditorium my guest and I were captivated by the carefully thought out set, created on levels to make the most of the space complete with a raised area for the band, cleverly shrouded by foliage. An array of stunning colour changing LED globes hung at varying heights created a truly magical atmosphere and were used to great effect throughout to set the mood for each scene. But perhaps the star of the piece was the excellently crafted wardrobe, set to revolve which provided quick changes between the house and the forest of Narnia. Filled with fur coats fitting of the time the children were easily able to enter the front of the wardrobe then exit through the back. Mr Tumnus’ house was also very good with huge attention to detail and again set on trucks to revolve between scene changes.

Despite this being a large cast of over 30 performers the stage never felt crowded with the raised areas on set being well utilised. Good use also of the auditorium with cast members entering and exiting the stage through the audience. This can often cause some distraction, taking focus away from the action on stage but this was not the case as the performers handled themselves so well during these moments.

As is always the way with large cast productions I cannot mention everyone individually. But every single performer on stage was well rehearsed, kept character, sang out and looked sure of what they were doing. Most importantly they all looked like they were having a wonderful time which in turn meant the audience did too. At times some of the dialogue was a little rushed so it was hard to hear what was said but this is something that is just down to experience and stage time.

However, I must of course mention a few pivotal characters.

The four Pevensie children were perfectly cast and each brought these familiar characters to life just as I had hoped. Stefan Dodsworth as the eldest, Peter, seemed to have stepped straight out of the 1940’s with his clipped accent and an older than his years manner. His singing was excellent and delivered with a relaxed confidence that I thoroughly enjoyed. Chloe Giles gave us a sweet and caring Susan and sang beautifully throughout. Chloe has a lovely calmness on stage making her a joy to watch. Shay Mullery was excellent as the naughty Edmund and had some brilliantly executed reflective moments. His character is probably the most complex but he was able to switch easily between the trouble making youngest brother to a boy who is regretful of his actions. Very well done. Lastly Aurelia Stevenson was utterly charming as the inquisitive Lucy. With beautiful diction and a singing voice to match, Aurelia is a young performer to watch for the future.

Erin Spilling as the White Witch of Narnia was a revelation. What a fantastic young actor with superb stage craft. She drew the audience in, engaging with us but without ever over doing it. Erin looked incredible in her costume complete with the most beautiful ice crown and had a wonderful command of the stage. I was extremely impressed. Equally Kyla Randall as Aslan gave a strong performance. I have seen this young lady in several productions now and even when she does not have a principal role I am always drawn to her performances. So it was great to see her in a part where she really had the opportunity to shine.

Other well deserved mentions go to Erin Trueman as Mr Tumnus, displaying her tap skills and a gorgeous singing voice, Dexter Naunton as Professor Kirk already showing signs of becoming a great character actor at such a young age and the very funny Joshua Kingston-Smith and Annabelle Clarke as Mr and Mrs Beaver both providing some great comedic moments. A huge well done to all of you. My only note here is to encourage these performers to look out at the audience, we want to see your expressive faces to really be able to appreciate the wonderful job you are all doing.

Costumes and make up are essential to the success of this show and these were all very good.

Congratulations to all involved with this. I particularly loved the Queen’s crown and Aslan’s robes. Props also looked very well made with Aslan’s rock splitting effectively and shields/swords/wands etc either made or sourced all added to the overall visuals. Lighting was definitely effective and I enjoyed seeing the colourful flowers being added to the stage during the transition from winter in Narnia. My only slight niggle was at times I felt the lighting could have been dimmed during the turning of the wardrobe or the house. I appreciate the huge efforts made by backstage to keep the pace of the show flowing and they certainly did that but I wonder if there was a way for the crew to be hidden from audience view during the scene changes. That said they kept the show going seamlessly and lengthy blackouts were avoided. Sound was fine for the most part, I struggled to hear at the beginning but it improved over the course of the show.

Choreography was simple but well executed. The spacing was very good and I enjoyed the tap number led by Mr Tumnus in Act 1. This isn’t a show that lends itself to big dance numbers for the most part but the cast moved well and with conviction.

If I’m being really honest I find the score for this show a little strange and not to my personal taste. There are times when the music seems repetitive and with the exception of the title song I don’t feel there are any memorable numbers. However the band were excellent, led by MD Sue Edwards and I particularly enjoyed the sound made by the woodwind instruments which fitted the forest scenes perfectly. The cast coped very well with the music and I could see Sue had them well rehearsed and as I looked around I noticed everyone was word perfect. Sadly I couldn’t hear many attempts at harmony but perhaps this is down to the score itself. That said the cast made a nice sound.

As is always the case with this society my guest and I were treated exceptionally well by the front of house team. It is always helpful when we are given time with the production team too and Matt and Sharon Scott were wonderful in explaining their creative vision and giving us an insight into their rehearsal process. What really came across from them as Directors was the time and dedication they give to their members and the freedom of expression that these young performers are allowed to be a part of the creative process. Thank you both for creating a magical piece of theatre.

 

 

 

Victoria Carey

Rep, District 8

 

 

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.