Reviewed by Deborah Banasko
The delightful story “Dear Zoo” by Rod Campbell is a staple in most family book collections I’m sure, and never fails to raise a smile.
I was so excited to take my 3-year-old son to see the first ever stage adaptation, as this is a favourite of ours.
The Victoria Theatre in Halifax is located in the town centre, less than 5 minutes walk from two small car-parks. That said, we managed to park on the road nearby without any problem.
The staff are always so friendly and helpful, with the usual refreshments for sale plus a stand with “Dear Zoo” merchandise. I have to say it was nice to see gifts starting at £1.50.
The auditorium itself is very traditional and beautiful inside, with comfortable seating and a fantastic view even from several rows back. I have been to this theatre many times and never had an issue with poor seating.
The theatre adaptation stays true to the story but sets the scene by creating an identity for the storyteller. Two best friends, Ben and Sally, are playing throughout the tale in Ben’s garden. Ben has written a letter to the zoo, asking for them to send him a pet.
Zookeeper Sam delivers various animals to Ben, from an elephant to a frog, but none are quite right for him, so he has to send them back. After many attempts, the zoo has a really good think and makes one last effort at finding the perfect pet for Ben.
Various puppets are used, along with actors taking on the roles of some of the animals. The animal crates are wooden boxes of various sizes, and it was fun for my son to guess which animal might be inside. Some of the puppets were created from wood in 2D, with moving eyes or body parts, whilst others were 3D created from soft materials.
All of the animals looked just as they did in the book, which I was pleased to note. The monkey and frog were played by actors jumping around and generally being silly. I think the variety of approaches to creating the characters worked really well and kept the children enthralled. The lion puppet was particularly effective as he reached his paws up and opened his jaws.
Each animal spoke and often sang, as we got to know their character and the reason why Ben simply could not keep it.
The set was simple, bright and not too distracting from the main event. My son squealed whilst waiting for the show to start as they had a giant front page of “Dear Zoo” on display, which led to lots of chat about the story.
The only slight negative aspect of the show for me was the representation of the lion. He was a little too scary for my son, and he asked to go home. To be fair on the Director, the lion is mean to be “too fierce” so it would have been difficult and inaccurate for him to be anything but.
I have to give credit though as the fear didn’t last too long, with the actors pulling things back in control by asking the children to roar at the lion and scare him! Initially my son was more “terrified screaming” at the lion, but by the third attempt he had graduated into a roar and was telling me how he was scaring that mean lion away. Nicely handled, just a tad too scary initially perhaps.
There is a lot of repetition of phrases and noises, which is ideal for children of pre-school age. For example, the noise of Sam’s truck arriving signals that a new animal is being delivered (cue my son trying to guess which animal is coming next), and the hand actions used during the famous “I sent it back” line allows the children to join in. There is plenty of counting and reading of the labels on the animal crates.
Audience participation is encouraged, as we are asked questions to shout out answers to which my son loved. I especially liked the snake song and dance; children were asked to stand up, and it consisted of about three or four basic moves which were tailored perfectly for this age group. I did appreciate the control that the actors had over the children, asking them to sit back down afterwards.
I have to give credit to the actors who had created such fun, enthusiastic characters that I had to keep reminding myself that Ben and Sally were adults playing children, and not actually children.
At the end of the show we were promised a visit from one of the animals in the foyer. As we made our way out there was a queue, and we could see that people were posing for photographs with the actors and the monkey character. We waited our turn, but when we reached the front the actors immediately said that it was time to go and they left. This is only a small criticism, and I appreciate they had a second show to prepare for, but my suggestion would be to make it clear that they would only be in the foyer a short time. Individual photographs with a select number of children seems a little cruel, so perhaps organise this set-up better so that all children can move along the line quickly to meet the stars.
The show lasted an hour, and that is a long time to keep pre-school children entertained without an interval. However, the cast managed it with ease and really brought the book to life, I was so impressed. A must-see for fans of the book, and for any young child who likes animals! I would rate the show 5 stars out of 5.
Rating: 5/5
Tickets cost from £15.75 (booking fees may apply).
Dear Zoo is at the Victoria Theatre in Halifax from 6-7 March 2018, for more information or to book tickets visit www.calderdale.gov.uk/victoria or call the box office on 01422 351158.
Victoria Theatre, Fountain Street, Halifax HX1 1BP | 01422 351158
