The 26 Storey Treehouse
Adapted from the book by Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton by Richard Tulloch. Directed by Julian Louis and Liesel Badorrek. Set and costume design by Mark Thompson. Lighting by Nicholas Higgins. Sound design by Ross Johnston. Choreography by Katie Kermond. The Q. Queanbeyan Peforming Arts Centre. August 25-28 2015
Reviewed by Peter Wilkins
Writer, Andy Griffiths, and
illustrator, Terry Denton have once again hit on the perfect recipe to enchant
and delight young children with The 26
Storey Treehouse, a colourful, bright and fun-filled sequel to their
runaway success, The 13 Storey Treehouse.
With a collection of new and exciting adventures, Andy (Luke Carson)and Terry
(John Shearman), accompanied by two other actors and an obliging stagehand set out to escape their bossy, uncaring parents and
enter into a perilous world of Captain Woodhead (James Lee) and his wooden cutout band of nasty pirates, Gorgonzola, the
cheese smelling, man-eating shark, puppeteered by the busy stagehand, the
dangerous Maze of Doom and the devious Edward Scooperhands and his
seventy-ninth scoop of icecream with a tricky twist, Versatile actor, James
Lee, revels in his various villainous
roles, all of whom bear a striking resemblance to Hector Hautkop, an actor
invited to join Andy and Terry on their adventures. But is he to be
trusted? Or is he nothing more than a
termite in the tree?
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| Luke Carson as Andy. John Shearman as Terry Photo by Sasha Bradbury |
Richard Tulloch’s adaptation of
the award winning book demonstrates his longtime and impressive expertise as a
writer and adapter of plays for youth and the very young. Every element of
successful children’s theatre has been included in this tightly scripted and fast-paced
adaptation of Griffiths’ and Denton’s book. The young audience giggled and
guffawed at the running underpants joke. Lavatory humour still delights the
young. Slapstick moments have the audience breaking into spontaneous laughter and
songs with lively actions have the kids clapping along with excitement. Mark
Thompson’s bright, portable treehouse design captures the cartoon character of
the storybook and Nicholas Higgin’s
lighting heightens the show’s moments of laughter, suspense, danger and
mystery. Katie Kermond’s choreography is
simple and slick and the company of performers hurl themselves enthusiastically
into this vigorously demanding, physically active and energy charged adventure
for 6 to 12 year olds. Perspiration-soaked shirts at the close of the show are
proof enough of the energy that Carson and Shearman throw into every action,
every song and dance routine and every frantic chase.
Directed with attention-grabbing
flair and non-stop business by CDP Artistic Director, Julian Louis, and Liesel
Badorrek, The 26 Storey Treehouse
remains true to the popular book, and the young audience remain rapt throughout
the hour-long performance.
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| John Shearman as Terry. Freya Pragt as Jill. Luke Carson as Andy Photo by Sasha Bradbury |
Only the
anarchic nature of the message could come into question. Andy and Terry are
driven from
their homes by
seemingly uncaring parents, who neglect them or stifle their liberty. The
audience eagerly claps along to the
lyrics of their rebellious song of freedom:
It’s so cool
Better than school
You can break every rule
When you live in a tree
A primary
school teacher told me of the trouble she had had with one child who refused to
behave after reading an Andy Griffiths’ story. One child in thousands, perhaps,
but parents may object that their attempts to have children clean their teeth
for two minutes, go to bed at a reasonable hour and clean up their rooms could
succumbt to the subterfuge, implied in the subversive message . In their defense, it might be claimed that
the play merely expresses what kids think anyway, and it is only a story of two
best friends with a passion to let their imaginations soar. Let’s not get too
PC obsessive.
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| John Shearman as Terry and Luke Carson as Andy in The 26 Storey Treehouse. Photo by Sasha Bradbury |
Anyway, one
could hardly complain about the woman’s role in this adventure. Animal loving,
plane flying, deep sea diving Jill (Freya Pagt) is on hand to save the day and rescue Andy and
Terry from pirates, sharks and the Maze of Doom. Feisty, clever and brave, it
is Jill who saves the day.
There can be little doubt that the young
audience loved the show, and I doubt that any will immediately run away from
home. After all, in the end, after escaping the dangers of the big wide world,
it seems that the age old message remains: “There’s no place like home,
especially if it is a 13 storey, 26 storey or even a 52 storey treehouse. That will be an adventure not to be missed
when this imaginative company brings another Treehouse story to the stage.
