Bedknobs And Broomsticks At The Lowry Theatre, Salford Review

Reviewed by Lucy Gwilliam

Last night we had the great experience of attending the Press Night of Bedknobs and Broomsticks, live at the Lowry Theatre in Salford, Manchester. This adaptation of the Disney classic is showing from Tuesday 15th March until Saturday 19th March.

This magical musical theatre production is a breath of fresh air, following what has been a very strange two years and it just felt amazing to get back to the theatre without restrictions in place, after what has felt like such along time away.

Watching the show took me back to my childhood and sitting for hours watching the film version of Bedknobs and Broomsticks. It was definitely a childhood favourite mine and one of my go to nostalgic films so I was extremely excited to see the musical theatre performance- my absolute favourite thing to do.

The show is set in World War 2 and sees three recently orphaned children Charlie, Carrie and Paul evacuated to the country side to live with Mrs Eglantine Price (Dianne Pilkinson). Here they go on an adventure with Mrs Price to find Professor Browne (Charlie Brunson) and his book of spells so that Mrs Price can cast spells to hopefully end the war.

The play is excellently cast, beautifully scripted and brilliantly executed. The first half was great and we laughed and applauded in all the scenes, however it was the second half that really got us enthralled. The use of the puppets to represent the animals from the original film were just mind blowing. We really loved the Briny Ballroom scene and the scenes with the king. These were just so magical and our favourite parts of the show. Although, I did love the show from start to finish and the fact that Dianne Pilkinson was absolutely captivating with the every word and every move. She really did steal the show.

The use of props and dance to create the easy flow from scene to scene was very well delivered and added that extra bit of sparkle. The ensemble cast did a brilliant job. Every element was perfectly timed and delivered to perfection.

The children in the play were very professional and did an absolutely amazing job depicting the characters.

The evening show begins 7.30pm with the afternoon show starting at 2pm.
Running times for the show are as follows:
Act 1: 70 minutes
Interval: 20 minutes
Act 2: 65 minutes

Overall, this was a brilliant show. I did attend with my husband but I really wished I had also taken my children along too (ages 8 and 12). They would have really loved it. I would recommend this show to anyone, young or elderly, it’s one for the whole family.

Ticket prices start from £20 and with only 8 performances planned for this leg of the tour, it is a definite must see. The Lowry often offer £10 tickets to certain shows for Salford residents so it’s worth signing up to their mailing list to hear of any offers.

Rating: I would rate the show 5/5, absolutely brilliant!

To book tickets please visit Bedknobs and Broomsticks | What’s On | The Lowry or phone the box office on 0343 208 6000