Written by Owen Mooney
Adapted & Directed by Cecilia Mooney
Venue: The Meteor
The Theandrican experience begins in the Meteor’s foyer as the decorations give a hint of the magical world the audience is about to enter.
The play follows the tale of John, Zara and Linda who sneak into a creepy old house during a game of hide and seek. Amongst the detritus is a book of magic. When one of the spells is accidentally recited, the three children are transported to a place called Theandrican.
The land of Theandrican isn’t all bad. There are talking cats, an Electricity person and his delightful sparkles, gorgeous fairies, a girl who can only talk back to front, and quirky professors. At an exceptionally pleasant afternoon tea, there is mention of organisations such as the Dragon Protection League and The Fairy Godmother Council (who take Health and Safety VERY seriously). However, there is also an evil baddie called Snottlegrot who lives in Theandrican with some spooky sidekicks. Linda, Zara and John with help of Theandrican’s magical inhabitants need to find a way to overcome Snottlegrot’s terrible plans and return to the safety of home.
Stories and More prides itself on making live theatre accessible to children, both on stage and behind the scenes. This is their eighth production at the Meteor, and 14th in total. The cast ranged in age from 5 to 65, with the bulk of the cast coming from the company’s weekly drama classes, and with additional support from the wider Waikato theatre community. Mooney is adept at finding a role for every person that will challenge their skills and help them grow as a performer.
The actors had a huge amount of dialogue to learn, but every line was delivered with confidence. The witty script drew inspiration from Disney, Hans Christian Anderson, Brothers Grimm, and current events. Adults will chuckle or even laugh out loud at some of the lines. The actors had been given free rein to explore their characters, and truly play in the magical world of theatre.
Mention must be given to the extensive crew who used their expertise to create costumes, set and props for this production; and those who worked backstage to help this experience come to life. The incidental music played during scene changes helped move the action effortlessly into the next vignette.
Children of all ages will enjoy being transported into a land of magic and humour and will be spellbound by glorious costumes – particularly those of the fairies, the sparkles and the camel. Congratulations to the Mooneys and everyone involved in this fantastic production. Theandrican was captivating. It was heart-warming to see the next generation of thespians treading the boards with such poise and assurance.
There are eight further performances over the next week. Theandrican is brilliant time-away-from-electronic-devices school holiday entertainment.
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