What’s it all about?
Everyone’s favourite purple-prickled, brown-furred, black-tongued, wart-nosed creature. But there’s no such thing as a Gruffalo, right?
Well, who would I be to confirm or deny such a thing and give away any furry surprises… What I can tell you with certainty is there is definitely a very brave mouse in search of a nut, a cunning fox, a slippery snake, a calculating owl and one very scary wood where things can get a bit lary. Oooo what’s that behind the tree? I for one, definitely caught a flash of some turned-out toes…
How do they tell the story?
Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s monumentally successful picture book – I know, I know, you skipped the ‘what’s it all about’ section – is brought to life in a raucous, fun, colourful and altogether welcoming burst of energy.
With an invitingly familiar set lifted straight from its pages, a cast of three is hilarious, bringing theatrical touches to each character: Fox is a cheeky wheeler dealer-type, Snake a swaggering, castanet player and Owl an eccentric, bossy army general. The trio is transformed into the woodland animals with the help of some customised tweed and multi-functional deerstalker hats.
What did the kids like best?
The flamboyancy and silliness of Snake and Owl, Mouse’s plucky calls for some help from the audience and the noisy appearance of a certain knobbly-kneed monster. Hang on, Gruffalos don’t exist, do they?
Who was in the crowd?
Hundreds of excited, beaming and entranced faces, many of which were obscured by proudly raised Gruffalo stuffed toys and cut-outs.
What’s being said on Twitter?
Will my little ones like it?
Undoubtedly so. Tall Stories makes an as near perfect kids’ shows as you can get, matching the fun of a playground with the standards of adult theatre. It may be a simple story, but this is an adventure you won’t forget and when a certain orange-eyed friend jumps into the audience, expect to feel as excited as any three-year-old.
The Gruffalo is playing until 6 September. You can book tickets through us here or, for performances during August, through our kids go free promotion Kids Week.