The Gruffalo - Review
A mouse took a stroll through the deep dark wood…. If you know this line, you like many parents will have read The Gruffalo over and over at bedtimes. So, it was a real treat to see the story brought to life at The Lyric Theatre, London.
I was lucky enough to be invited with my three year old daughter to see the show, what a fun day out we had. The adventure began with the tube journey, with The Lyric Theatre being easy to reach from both Piccadilly Circus or Leicester Square. We got off at the latter and my daughter thoroughly enjoyed her stroll through China Town up to Shaftesbury Avenue where she marvelled at all the glittering stage signs. The Lyric made the theatre trip as easy as possible for parents with a well organised buggy park and easy ticket collection. We were shown to our seats and there were plenty of plastic booster seats available to ensure everyone got a good view of the stage.
The show is aimed at 3 years and over, but there was a large mix of younger and older children who were enjoying the start of school holidays with a theatre treat! And at 55 minutes long and no interval it’s perfectly pitched to ensure no one got restless.
As the action began there was a smile on my daughters face from start to end. The performance follows the story of the book with some lovely embellishment and catchy songs. The actors were fabulous embracing their characters and drawing their audience in. Having seen some previous Tall Stories productions, I knew it would be a lovely theatre experience for children to enjoy, but what I wasn’t expecting, was for it to be so funny. The children squealed with delight and the adults all laughing at the subtle well-pitched humour.
As the story played out there was plenty of audience participation with the children out of their seats dancing with the snake, shouting at the stage to scare off the fox, and huge delight as the Gruffalo appeared on stage. The Gruffalo even got down into the audience at one point much to my daughter’s excitement. The actors played off this energy encouraging the fun, and relaxed parents let their children enjoy the theatre atmosphere without the worry of being too noisy or annoying the person next to them!
There was the perfect amount of music, audience interaction,and jokes to keep both the adults and children engaged and interested. Tall Stories are great at bringing loved stories to life on stage for audiences of all ages, and The Gruffalo is no different. I have been lucky enough to go to a number of their productions and I can honestly say that this was by far one of my favourites. Both of us loved it and I can not recommend it enough.
So, if you're looking for a Summer holiday treat and a great family day out this is a must for all. The show runs until the 8th September at The Lyric Theatre, London.
For more information please see: https://www.tallstories.org.uk/the-gruffalo
And my daughter’s verdict, “I love the Gruffalo, thanks for the best day Mummy”, you can’t ask for more than that!
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