Tom’s Midnight Garden At Theatre by the Lake Review

Reviewed by Jo Hardy

Live theatre is one of the things I have missed the most during the pandemic and going to the theatre is a big part of our families Christmas traditions so I was so excited to be invited to theatre by the lake to see their Christmas production of Tom’s Midnight Garden and even better I got to take my niece with me.  It’s been so long since we’ve done anything like this together, it was such a treat.

This children classic is not a story either of us were familiar with so we had no idea what to expect.  The story starts with Tom arriving at his aunt and uncles house where he’s been sent to isolate because his brother has the measles , it looks like Tom is going to have a very boring time ahead but things take an unexpected turn and when the clock in the hall strikes thirteen Tom finds himself entering another life in another time.

The show has a cast of eight with most of them playing multiple parts.  The ones who played children were so convincing.  I especially liked Hatty she was definitely a girl with attitude.   Aunty Gwen and Uncle Alan were adorable characters.  Aunty Gwen continually trying to feed Tom and Uncle Alan your typical grumpy uncle.  Their round the table breakfast scenes were so sunny and funny.

The time travel into the midnight garden was very cleverly done and there was also some cute puppetry in the show.
I did wonder if the story would be Christmassy enough and the skating scene answered that with a great big yes.   I was amazed at how the cast made it look like they were really skating on ice.  I don’t want to spoil it for those who haven’t seen the show yet.  All I’ll say is the winter skating scene is very realistic and I came out of the theatre expecting to see everywhere covered in snow.  Unfortunately as this was Cumbria it was pouring down with rain, but the show had given us a lovely Christmassy glow inside which stayed with us all the way home.  Only a live performance can do that, along with a team of brilliant creative people and fantastic actors.  The show is suitable for children over six and I am sure any adult could go with the children and enjoy it just as much as they will.

Rating: 5/5

The show runs from 1st Dec to 15th Dec it lasts 2 hours 10mins including an interval.  Most shows are full capacity but there are a few dates which are guaranteed socially distanced.  For those who don’t want to visit the theatre it is available digitally on demand from 23rd to 30th Dec.

Theatre tickets are £10 – £38 and online tickets are from £12 available to book on theatrebythelake.com.
This a very comfortable modern theatre ,with good facilities.  There’s plenty of pay and display parking and disabled access, the staff are all lovely and give you such a warm welcome.