SRT’s The Little Company’s ‘Rapunzel’ is an exceptionally well put-together musical play for young audience and families. We watched it on Saturday and loved it.
From March 14 to April 30, 2014 |
The plot is easy to follow and keeps kids riveted to their seats. Dialogues are engaging and not excessive, pitched to cater to kids’ short attention spans. It starts with a teenaged Rapunzel’s imprisonment in the tower instead of retelling it traditionally from the time Rapunzel was a newborn baby. The writers have cleverly injected humour into the script by localising it to include elements such as Esme the witch boasting about her chilli crab dish for the cooking competition. The themes of friendship, curiosity and hunger for knowledge came through quite strongly, making the play fun and educational.
Rapunzel, retold in this refreshingly witty adaptation! |
Esme the Witch, with her cooking utencils! |
The songs, all original compositions written specially for this play, feature catchy, melodious tunes (such as Brush, Brush, Brush your hair and Rapunzel, Rapunzel, Let Down Your Hair) which bring out the beautiful vocal quality of the main character ‘Rapunzel’ played by talented local jazz singer Cheryl Tan. The pace was kept lively with audience participation where the cast encouraged us to sing along to help them search for the three secret ingredients to break the enchantment spell: honey from the buzzing bee, water from the deep blue sea, the strongest lock which needs no key. Dana was tickled by the humorous sleepwalking ‘PJs’ song. The three animals (Harriet the Roadrunner, Hugo the Armadillo and Chester the Camel) provided lots of comic relief throughout the 45-mintute play, creating waves of chuckles amongst the audience.
Everyone joins in the ‘Honey from the Buzzing Bee’ song… |
Chester the Camel ‘s good rapport with the sleepwalking Prince… |
Also note-worthy is the creatively-designed backdrop and props. The landscapes and the very tall Rapunzel tower are done up in corrugated paper which magically opens up to reveal its double-storey interiors adorned with curtains, books, maps and a cooking pot. The outdoor garden was dotted with trees and flowers made with recycled plastic plates. The costumes were brightly-colored and attractive. What made it such an endearing play was the impressively adorable animal puppets. The kids had such a riot that they beseech-ed us to bring them to watch it again the moment we stepped out of the DBS Arts Theatre. Highly recommended!
SRT’s The Little Company has outdone themselves in this production. Don’t miss catching Rapunzel with your family – show runs until Sun Apr 30, 2014. Book your tickets on Sistic. To participate in our Rapunzel Tickets Giveaway, go here.
Rapunzel
Fri, 14 March to Wed, 30 April 2014
Mon – Fri: 10am, 2pm*
Sat, Sun & PH: 11am, 2pm
DBS Arts Centre
Tickets from SGD32
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