FOUR STARS

 

Dahl’s darkness is allowed to shine in David Wood’s adaptation for stage. So much so that my youngster looked up at me with chin all a-tremble during the interval and asked: “Why did that rhino have to kill James’ parents, Mummy?”

Because it was part of the original book, of course. And children have always loved Roald’s tales because the author never shied away from topics such as death and neglect. James’ aunts (Claire Greenway and Sioned Saunders) were wilfully cruel to their young falsetto, orphaned nephew, but their slightly pantomime portrayal of Sponge and Spiker fell a little short of convincing... or scary.

However, both actors took off when they metamorphosed into Ladybird and Spider.

As the whimsical bunch of creepycrawlies unfurled, this production really took off. We were both swept away by Wood’s sprinkles of magic and escapism – Tom Gillies was an uptight and fragile James and his joy at being given a bag of glowing beans was infectious. After a few quieter first scenes, the music kept the tempo bouncing all the way to the finale. All of the actors kept whipping out various intruments, from a whimsical flute to a sleazy sax and these live bursts were truly impressive. The fluid switching from speech to peach to each new sound helped this show sing, lending it an impromptu joy, like a kletzmer soundtrack.

Set design was suitably stark and surreal. The giant peach on stage swirled to reveal ladders or a cosy hideaway and screeching, funny seagulls, scooting sharks and a neon underwater show worked perfectly to lend a sense of being all out at sea. Plus, a big, inflatable fruit being chucked at the audience went down a storm. Meanwhile, a suicidally depressed earthworm (Rhys Saunders) and charismatic centipede (Chris Lindon) were utterly believable. Singing of smelly jelly and mice with grime, Birmingham Stage Company really know what makes children tick, so this is well worth an outing.

 

Oxford Playhouse
Until Saturday
Tickets: 01865 305305, oxfordplayhouse.com