THE ultimate judges of this stage adaptation from the books of A.A. Milne will be the very young audience members who crowd in for Free Rain Theatre’s summer holiday production.
To my mind, it was a hesitant and slightly slow interpretation of far too many episodes from Milne’s stories – the red balloon, the search for the Heffalump, the disappearance of Eeyore’s tail and so on.
With the exception of the ridiculously bouncy Lachlan Whan as Tigger, the cast lacked the physical training skills needed to give the plot some agility, though Kitty McGarry, as Kanga, managed to delight young and old with her clever manipulation of baby Roo in her pouch
The words often lacked flow and the enclosing before and after scenes with Christopher Robin’s nanny expounding the virtues of her strengthening medicine, added little to the central action.
Yet, in the hands of some very engaging actors, notably Whan, Miles Harrison as Winnie the Pooh, Sam Needham as Christopher Robin, the familiar events taking place in the 100-Aker-Wood seem to hit the spot with the little ones. For their interaction with the audience, this production is recommended.
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