It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these but here goes…
Everyone knows the story of Little Red Riding Hood. But who has ever thought about the real events behind the story? Where Rosie’s dear old Granny lived, for instance, and whether the Big Bad Wolf was really killed by the Woodsman. Certainly not the ramshackle troupe of travelling actors who roll into a town in the middle of nowhere one day to perform their take on the story. Nothing seems to be going right for them, but they have no idea just how bad things are about to get.
With a running time of 1hr 15 mins, Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf (filmed at The Lyric Theatre in Belfast) knows it has move quick to keep the little one’s attention.
We start off with the dulcet tones of local Jazz legend Kyron Bourke setting the scene at his grand piano before taking a meta approach to telling the tale of Little Red Riding Hood by an acting troupe that then find themselves in the real-life version of Little Red Riding Hood. It makes more sense watching it than my telling of it and gives a nice spin on the original story.
The original numbers and magical stunts, including a mind confusing turn by a 360 loop-de-loop grand piano, continue throughout to amuse and amaze. The use of boxes and stagecraft, costumes and general trickery make the best use of the stage, whilst allowing space for live musicians including Harpist Extrodinaire Ursula Burns.
It’s a very neat package, with a few scary bits (i had to cover some eyes), that kids should love and adults can enjoy, instead of tolerating, and quite frankly is just nice to get that theatre feeling even if you are in your own home. They even tell you when the interval is so you can get snacks and drinks!
The show runs until 29th May on youtube and contributions to The Lyric (in lieu of ticket sales) are greatly appreciated here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RL3IAjxL5ac
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