WORLD PREMIERE Babes in Toyland

1986 BABES DAZZLE IN LIVELY DANCE

Review by John Harris

Delightful surprises do not often come along in theatre. Babes in Toyland at Twelfth Night Theatre is one such rarity.

Using a cast of some 70 young dancers, choreographer Jacqui Carroll has made excellent use of her resources, resulting in one of the charmers of the year.

The “babes” are the children of a large Edwardian family with a habit of falling into fairyland adventures. When they tiptoe into a musty and forbidden attic, a large chest flies open and out tumbles a process ion of life size Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy dolls, all of whom, of course, dance up and down and around and about before everyone, including the “babes”, disappear into the chest.

In scene two, the youngsters are on a typical English picnic, when their world suddenly turns upside down and they find themselves in the Australian bush, complete with a family of board-riding koalas.

Their third adventure involves wind-up toy soldiers and dolls, while the final scene has the kids visiting a toy shop, leading to a spectacular finale in which the entire cast explodes on to stage in a riot of colour and movement.

The young dancers throw themselves into their dancing roles with enviable verve and vigour, making up in enthusiasm what they might yet lack in precision. And it’s all enhanced by a succession of simple  but effective sets conceived by designer wizard Max Hurley.

Some of the music is traditional; some electric; and one dazzling piece in the first scene seems to come from an original 1930s 78 record.

Babes in Toyland is a rarity in school holiday attractions: it not only captivates kids with its light, colour and movement, it delights mums and dads too. This production continues at Twelfth Night Theatre until Saturday.

The Daily Sun, 24 September 1986