Camden Theatre: The Sleeping Beauty

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The Review - THEATRE by SUSIE SEABROOK
Published: 9 October 2008

A magical world on a string

THE SLEEPING BEAUTY
Little Angel Theatre

A TRIP to the theatre for a children’s production can be a noisy, distracting affair. Every time you get close to losing yourself in the piece you find your attention diverted by children shouting and wriggling.
The Sleeping Beauty at the Little Angel Theatre could not be a more different experience. An hour and a half of silence in a room full of children – except for timely giggles and cheers – is deservedly earned by these skilled performers. I have never seen children so utterly absorbed – this show is magic.
The script is largely faithful to the original story (Grimms’ Briar Rose) although it has been padded out with sub-plots that refer to other fairytales and stories; these little sketches nestled neatly between the main plot-points provide most of the humour and slapstick.
The puppeteers move with skill and grace, effortlessly breathing life into the beautiful little wooden marionettes – if the puppets were not so beautiful you could easily spend the duration of the play just watching their hands moving the puppets around the stage. They swap and change them between their eight hands without the slightest jerk or mishap. The voices they provide are engaging, believable and hilarious – my daughter is still mimicking them four days later.
This relaxed, family-run theatre is doing great work, and providing a little bit of magic just behind the consumerist chaos of Upper Street. John Wright made the puppets, Sarah Wright is one of the puppeteers and Lyndie Wright designs the charming costumes. Sadly, the theatre has been rejected for project funding by the Arts Council this year, so they need all the help they deserve.
This production is a real treat for the whole family – go along, be inspired. It will make your day.
Until November 9
020 7226 1787

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