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We’re going on a bear hunt
Birmingham Town Hall
****
WHAT a delightful piece of whimsy to
brighten the dark days of winter and provide a charming, entertaining
Christmas treat for youngsters.
Adapted from Michael Rosen’s much loved story,
director Sally Cookson and designer Katie Sykes have avoided the
temptation to make the stage version merely an animated book and turned
it into an interactive play.
Mark Peachy as the dad, who we find can’t swim
incidentally, Rachel Gay as the girl and David Shute as the boy, not
only arrive through the audience, but the boy and girl move among the
kids first asking for words to describe bears and second, perhaps a
little less intellectually challenging, but probably more fun, to spray
everyone with water.
Then there is Niall Kerrygan as the dog who is
also the musician playing guitar, accordion, drums and melodica. As a
dog, to the obvious delight of the youngsters in the audience, he also
enjoys rolling in bear poo. Children and poo are a marriage made in
heaven when it comes to guaranteed laughs.
The cast keep to the basic story but mix in songs
and play around the trials faced in searching for a fierce, large bear,
with sharp teeth and big claws – although when he, or she . . . let us
not make assumptions here . . . . when the bear does appear he, or she,
appears rather friendly and gets cheers of his/her own when it comes to
the curtain call.
It’s all very simple and very effective. The long
grass, for example, was rather like a green version of one of those
plastic strip fly screens you find in doorways to kitchens and
storerooms in Greek tavernas, while the river was a line of blue
buckets, suitably filled with water, the water and river becoming a
shared experience with the audience.
Snow was lights and ribbons on sticks weaving
hypnotising patters while mud was gloopy red paint squirted into a
washing up bowl and used to make handprints . . . everywhere. Kids love
slapstick almost as much as any mention of poo so laughed happily as the
cast daubed paid on each other in a don’t try this at home . . . or
else! . . . interlude
The result was a lively, retelling of a familiar
story which almost every child already knew from the responses. The cast
were full of infectious enthusiasm, carrying their young audience along
with them, the music simple, yet more sophisticated than man children’s
shows and the audience went home happy and smiling, so job done. Theatre
needs shows like this to hook the next generation of theatregoers. It’s
fun, fast paced, inventive and treats children as young adults. And they
loved it. To 13-01-12.
Roger Clarke
22-12-15
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