I recently had the pleasure of watching “The Box of Delights” at the RSC in Stratford.
To begin with the story line was quite slow which created a sense of tension on me watching. The setting was making me wonder what’s going to happen and excited to see how the writer tells and shows the story! As the production went on it all came to life with the trap doors, projected puppets, smoke and special effects. It was also exciting to see the characters use the audiences pathways to interact with the people around them.
Later on in the Christmas production, puppetry was introduced in some scenes including: a train with smoke, sound effects and lighting, an intricate golden phoenix and of course a dog called Barney that moved so realistically you could forget that he’s not real!!
Maria and Peter, the brother and sister were so endearing and funny they were helping Kay Harker to save the box of delights!!
I personally think that the show was amazing. All of the actors and actresses were using everything around them to put on an outstanding performance to the public. The main characters ( Kay Harker, Cole Hawlings, Maria jones, Peter Jones and Abner Brown) were looking all around at the audience to make us all feel like we are a part of the story line.