Adapted by actor, writer and
magician...yes...really...David Wood and directed by Teresa Ludovico (who
previously directed the popular version of Philip Pullman’s I Was A Rat) this
brand new production of Dahl’s classic The BFG is a pretty much perfect festive
family treat.
Telling the story of a young girl called Sophie
(named after Dahl’s real life granddaughter who went on to become a model before
marrying pocket sized pianist Jamie Cullum), who’s snatched from an orphanage
by a giant that delivers dreams to children it’s packed with glorious Dahl
stuff and nonsense.
Played by Joshua Manning this particular BFG comes
across as part Billy Connolly, part Ali G and part Droog (thanks to Dahl’s marvellously
mangled giant’s language) and he manages to make that awkward transition from the
scary ogre that initially terrifies Sophie to her friend pretty smoothly. There
are a trio of Sophies on offer, ours tonight was Lara Wollington who’s already
played the West End lead in another Dahl inspired smash hit, Matilda The
Musical. She sang and danced her socks off displaying a level of
professionalism, timing and innate charm that could shame some actresses five
times her age.
Ludovico sprinkles some Italian sophistication on
the whole piece, gently introducing younger members of the audience to a little
ballet, opera and acrobatics and thanks to the masked ‘Dark Thing’ characters that
drift in and out of Act I, even the tradition of Commedia dell’arte (or that
might just be me over thinking things). There’s possibly a hint of surrealism
here and there too, less Dahl more Dali if you will, but it’s all cleverly blended
in to the action without distracting from what is, after all, just great family
fun.
Act II goes straight for the belly laughs with a
truly show stealing performance from Mike Goodenough as the Queen of England ably
supported by Mei Mac as Pup-Pup the Dog.
They’re worth the price of a ticket on
their own. Add some truly giant sized hands and feet and chair rumbling bass
for the giant’s footsteps and...er...all the breaking wind sequences (getting
you in the mood for sprout season no doubt) and this BFG is a Bloomin’ Flippin’
Great night out!
No comments:
Post a Comment