Riverfront Theatre, Newport & On Tour
★★★★★
Owl at Home is industry leading children’s theatre. With lots to take away for children and adults alike. An obvious recommendation for those with children or aspiring theatre makers, Theatr Iolo are the top of their class.
Photograph: Kirsten McTernan
It is hard to score children’s theatre because believe it or not, I am not a child. However, in scoring Theatre Iolo’s Owl at Home I look to the expertise of the five-year-old with me when I saw it. Their score when asked was an enthusiastic 10/10 and so I’ve converted that into our blogs reliable star measure.
I trust his expertise as well, he was enthralled and giggling throughout the entire show, literally on the edge of his seat. Owl at Home is a charming and captivating tale that awoke imaginations with plenty for the adults to enjoy too. It is top tier children’s theatre from Theatr Iolo who have stood the test of time, so you know you’re in safe hands. I cannot recommend enough taking your young people to Owl At Home.
Children’s theatre is both inherently very difficult to do well and very easy to underestimate yet Theatr Iolo have mastered the craft. When devising children’s theatre, your first hurdle is devising a show that you think a 5 – 11-year-old might like when most of the time a 5 – 11-year-old isn’t going to be in the rehearsal room. Then, when there is an actual child watching your show, they do not care that you lovingly created this piece of Theatre devised over many months at much expense of your time, stress and money. Children are far and above the most brutal critics on the planet. If they think your show is naff, they won’t just tell you out loud mid-performance, they’ll shout it out to make sure you really understand their notes. They’ll go and dance in the aisle to pass the time, scream and run around with their friend and quickly your performance can slide into the abyss of chaos. It’s as close as we can get to the historical depiction of audiences at Shakespeare’s Globe and it’s in equal parts exciting and intimidating. It’s very difficult to prepare your show for this especially with so many variables at play, many outside of your direct control. You could have a perfectly formulated, paced show but if the group of kids you have coming to your performance are told off sternly by their teacher on the coach to the theatre over the amount of noise their making, they’ll enter the room surly and quiet, too scared to so much as giggle. Children’s Theatre is all about harnessing and tempering the chaotic energy of a room full of young people and putting that focus onto your show. It. Is. Not. Easy.
Enter Theatr Iolo who have been doing this for thirty-five years. That tenure is immensely impressive. Especially when children’s theatre is first to go in favour of the panto or musical when the purse strings are drawn. Their experience shows with Owl at Home, a striking, wonderful piece of Theatre for children.
The experience of Owl at Home begins in the foyer where friendly people from Iolo guide children to arts & crafts station for show related activities prior to the performance. I learned that the company has hired its own audience manager which act as a buffer between venue and performance, handling potential stage invaders with grace to forgo any potential telling off from an unawares usher. They also manage all the pre-show activities which I encourage you to go early to experience. Free arts and crafts activities themed around the show that give your little one (and you!) time to decompress from whatever is happening outside of the venue and relax into the performance. You can tell that Theatr Iolo have put a lot of effort and thought into the experience of performance, their expertise affecting far more than merely what happens when you take your seat.
Once you do take your seat though you’re struck by Anisha Field’s cosy, detailed design. This detail kept the audience speculating on what was what and captured their imaginations from the very moment they set eyes on it. Dinah Mullen’s sound design ushers you into the setting of the Owl’s mysterious, charming world and Ceri James’s lighting design is homely, warm and striking on the right notes throughout.
Owl at Home is unsurprisingly about an Owl, performed solo by George Williams. Williams impresses with song, dance and clowning throughout and it is incredible that he can maintain the tempo and keep attention on his own on stage. It is much easier to keep focus when you can have a tennis match with a counterpart on stage for the attention but doing so alone is a feat in and of itself. Williams finely orchestrates the energy of the audience right up during the funny sequences but then carefully back down again so as not to stir the young ones into a frenzy for the slower, quieter sections. Owl at Home knows exactly when attention is beginning to fade before bouncing into a new attention-grabbing sequence that keep the audience literally on the edge of their seats. The ebbs and flows of the show are expertly crafted by director Lee Lyford and deftly executed by Williams.
The story follows the Owl as he sits alone and comfy inside, eating mice much to the audience’s disgust and delight and drinking tea. The Owl though runs out of milk, creates a mess of crumbs, and is attacked by his hoover in a hilarious sequence before settling to read his book. Owl delights with funny, focus pulling songs throughout the show and in one hilarious sequence runs out of power and must rush back and for to his bicycle to get some power back again. Here the Owl explains he can’t be in two places at once, he can’t keep the lights on but also lie in bed and read his book. This messaging is particularly poignant, a gentle reminder to all that only so much is within our influence. Likewise, a useful metaphor for children that their parents can’t always be with them when they’re at work, keeping the lights on at home. There are several similar messages to take from Owl at Home that inspire thought and conversation.
The final quarter of the show sees the Owl meet his friend the moon and the moon’s family of stars, finding comfort in them when things for the Owl are tough. I think there is room for development in this end of the show. It seems a little detached from the messaging prior. I felt like a lot of the strings laid out didn’t connect to the finale and this was a missed opportunity. There’s potential for a poignant full-stop on the themes throughout with a reminder that we can’t be in more than one place at a time, we can’t help that sometimes we run out of milk, or we can’t keep the heating on or boil the kettle. Sometimes the lights go out and we simply can’t hop on the bike to get everything going again. Yet in the night, usually a time of unease and anxiety for most young people, we can find comfort and friendship from the moon and its family of stars in our cosy homes and beds. I thought the show’s momentum was going to naturally lead us to this conclusion, but it didn’t and I was left slightly wanting. This is perhaps by design, or perhaps a result of the show’s development coming from prior to the pandemic lockdowns. Yet a little development here could really make these notes shine in the light of the anxiety and uncertainty surrounding the world in 2022.
That said, I don’t matter at all, because the show is for 5 – 11-year-olds all of whom in my performance loved what they saw. It was thought provoking, hilarious and exciting with plenty of talking points and moments to take away and discuss. The thing I love most about Theatr Iolo is that they also look for those Pixar moments – that is –moments in the show that are in equal parts for the adults as well as the children. A reference to a classic Jaffa Cake advert being one of a few. It’s these moments that make the shows a delight not just for the kids but importantly for the adults shipping their young people along and fronting the cost of the ticket.
Theatr Iolo are industry leading theatre-makers, if you have young ones at home, you’d be a fool to miss an opportunity to catch any of their shows. If you’re an aspiring theatre maker or student, you need to see this company who are at the top of their class.
For parents, £21 for you and your little one could be a big ask – but you should know and trust that Theatr Iolo are worth every penny.
Where: Riverfront Theatre & On Tour, see website.
When: 18th – 22nd October 2022
Tickets: Book here
Programme: Free via QR code on a leaflet or here on website. Teacher’s pack.
Drinks: Coffee and snacks are reasonable / cheap from the café.
Wales Theatre Review 