Review: THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE (UK Tour)

 

 

It takes us right back to our school days where we first read the book which was originally published in 1950 by author C.S. Lewis and the starting point for the seven novels that have collectively become known as The Chronicles Of Narnia.  Over the years television and the movies have had fair stabs at recreating the magical land, but our obessesion with the stage means we have been drawn to this production which has been doing the rounds on tour, as well as stints in the West End since 2017.

For those unfamiliar with this now classic tale,  we follow four of the Pevensie children (Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy) as they leave war torn London as evacuees headed for safety in the countryside. In the large house owned by Professor Digory Kirke, Lucy discovers a wardrobe which is a portal to a different world, the snow covered landscape of Narnia. Here she meets Mr. Tumnus, a faun who invites her to tea.  He tells me he is duty bound to report her to the White Witch, who has kept Narnia in perpetual winter.  But he likes Lucy, so decides he will not.  Lucy's brothers and sister refuse to believe her fantastical tale, but Edward subsequently follows her into Narnia and meets the White Witch herself, she promises Edward he will be a Prince if he brings his siblings to her.  This he duly does, and the children learn that the White Witch's rule will end when "two sons of Adam, and two daughters of Eve sit on the four thrones of Cair Paravel".  From here it is a perilous adventure of betrayal and loss and the arrival of the mighty lion Aslan, rightful King of Narnia, with his army...

This adaptation by Mike Peck and directed by Mike Fentiman, is a play with music, there are a few isolated songs but it cannot be classed as a musical.  The music is very much in a pagan folk style when we enter Narnia, and the talented cast of actor-musicans (yes they can do both at the same time) provide much of the atmosphere of the storytelling with their incidental music and soundscapes.  It is matched by the costumes and stage designs of Tom Paris,  choosing to portray Narnia as a land of dark with flashes of white using banners of material wafted about and morphing into dwellings and storms. It sounds odd written down, but really works in reminding us of the dark forces at work in Narnia and the battle raging between light and dark. Full marks to the puppeters who create a myriad of beings including the formidable presence of Aslan, the mightiest of Lions, who is also portrayed as a man (Stanton Wright) standing beside in furs,  thus during Aslan's death it is the man who is prostrate on the stone slab. Again, it works.

The cast all deliver solid performances throughout. Bunmi Osadolor, Kudzai Mangombe, Jesse Dunbar and Joanna Adaran give us a believeable Pevensie family drawn into a world which is at war, both in the reality and in Narnia. Alfie Richards' Mr Tumnus shows the gentler side of Narnians, making it all the more shocking when he is turned to stone. So too, Ed Thorpe and Anya De Villiers as Mr and Mrs Beaver, victims of the cruel reign of the White Witch (a powerful presence in Katy Stephens) whose icy cold heart matches the landscape. Kraig Thornber offers wise counsel as The Professor in the real world, a solid connection for the children who are thrown by being parted from their mother back in London.  

 

Presenting such an all encompassing fantasy novel on the stage is wrought with difficulties,  but these are overcome wonderfully in this daring production which thrills and moves in turn. Its swathed in gothic atmosphere, and the final showdown and fall of the witch is pure theatre. We were not sure what to expect as we took our seats but thankfully we opened our minds (on the advice of the Professor) and were rewarded by a visit to Narnia that we will long remember.  

Rob & Ian 

Further details on the UK Tour can be found at the THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE OFFICIAL WEBSITE