The Snowman, Birmingham REP - review
It's one of the finest winter stories of all. A boy's magical encounter with a snowman, as created in 1978 by Raymond Briggs, is a perennial favourite.
And a re-imagined theatrical staging at the city's REP is equally popular.
The story is familiar to all: a boy plays in the snow and builds a snowman, only to wake the following night and enjoy the most marvellous of adventures with his creation.
The REP's adaptation follows Briggs' story, sending the youngster Walking In The Air en route to adventures in the North Pole.
There are additions, of course, and a scene in which the Snowman basks in the chilly glow of a fridge was given comedy value. A limbo-dancing pineapple, coconut and banana gave it an exotic edge – and conjured dreams of Lewis Carroll-esque hallucinations.
Where The REP's version differs with the film and the book is with its employment of dance. The staging is, ostensibly, a mini-ballet with elements of silent movie-style slapstick.
And the dance itself was magnificent. The Snowman must have been hotter than a rhino-costume-wearing marathon runner by the end of an epic hour-and-45-minute show.
His athletic routines were superlative, as were those of a ballerina who played the fairy on a jewellery box and others.
But more than being a show about dance, or story, The Snowman is a production about magic. It takes audiences of all ages on a spellbinding journey.
It was easy to suspend one's disbelief as pretend snow poured into the auditorium and hundreds of children cooed their admiration.
Remarkable and full of beauty, The Snowman melts the hardest hearts.
By Andy Richardson
