Play review: Grimm Tales @ Theatre by the Lake, Keswick (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Play review: Grimm Tales @ Theatre by the Lake, Keswick

4:10pm Sunday 3rd January 2010 in

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THE pace of this dramatisation of the gruesome folktales of the Brothers Grimm is beaten out throughout this surreal production that grabs its audience by the throat from the start.

I must admit I had forgotten just how dark these stories were, until the opening scene when a mother puts her own life before those of her two children - Hansel and Gretel; Alys Torrance was truly horrifying as the evil mum.

Noel White as the bird in the following Golden Goose tale lifted the spirits with his creation of web feet using two yellow marigold gloves – excellent comic timing.

The Theatre by the Lake stage set is created from rubbish – plastic cans, old cds, funnels, bottles and much more – and the six folk tales are told upon a rhythmic backdrop.

It is entertaining, thought provoking and definitely never boring.

The ‘rubbish’ becomes the percussion instruments and the versatile actors, when not performing their character roles, take over the piano, flute, clarinet and even a guitar made from an old metal petrol can.

From one beat to another they move from character to character, creating a magical, yet sinister world around them.

The actors never leave the stage – except when to chase each other around the theatre.

The strength of this production is not just the powerful stories of human weakness, but a well cast company of actors.

Grimm Tales runs at Keswick’s Theatre by the Lake until Saturday (January 9).