Review: WOW! Said the Owl, Little Angel Theatre

Based on the book written and illustrated by Tim Hopgood, this delightful page to stage adaptation of WOW! Said the Owl has returned to Little Angel Theatre and re-nested in the Studios, just round the corner from their main building. The 35-minute solo show is aimed at ages 2-5 years and uses puppetry to tell the story of a little owl who stays awake to experience the light of a colourful day.

The young audience and their families are gently welcomed to acclimatise in the calm studio space where a box set softly draped in white fabric is already magically lit like a picture book frame. A white ukulele, two birds, a triangle and a block of treads balance out a white textured nest, which hangs centre stage to give awaiting young eyes a focus. I was fortunate to be sat behind a brilliantly prepared mum, who had the picture book with her to retell the story to her child as the audience came in and settled. The illustrations are beautiful and the stage adaptation remains faithful to the book whilst giving the delivery of the story its own theatrical form. This includes a clever utilisation of the aesthetic in the set, props and costume by designer Fiammetta Horvat. There is an ingenious use of objects hidden around the stage, manipulated with dexterous grace and movement by performer Lizzie Wort.

The Lady (Wort) enters and dazzles with smiles and a white textured costume suggestive of feathers. She shows the audience a picture book illustration of a little owl and the narrative successfully transitions into her world. It’s made clear that owls stay awake at night as Wort playfully uses large cutout features to make eyes and a beak, and a crescent moon is also projected to set up further shadow puppetry. The central character is a cute owl puppet (puppets by Keith Frederick), revealed from within its nest with simple and effective movement and best showcased when flying around the audience. A nice play on size offers a smaller version that can perch on ledges and the ukulele. Twisted material offers cloud-like animals and a large sun with billowing fabric skies. Wort’s costume is then neatly shed to reveal the leaf greens of daytime light.

A continuous soundtrack by Dominic Sales accompanies the visuals to keep the magic alive, and it’s punctuated by calypsos and opera. The audience’s rendition of the Sun’s one word song entitled ‘Yellow’ cuts across the sweetness, and gives Chris Martin a run for his money, while the opera-singing orange flower gloves keep the twee at bay.

The whole production is enhanced by the lighting: the storytelling would be diminished without the opening hews of pink dawn that work through nature’s colours until the grumpy grey cloud puppet eats them. It punctuates the story and creates clear scenes for young folk learning their colours. The ribbon strands of the rainbow are slightly underwhelming, although deftly dispersed, and maybe the payoff is a night sky of stars revealed using a final costume change.

As someone who still wows at rainbows, it was good to be reminded of nature’s immersive and colourful beauty. It felt like half an hour of colour therapy and I’m pretty sure the carers in the audience were grateful to take these unexpected soothing moments too! More importantly, the watching young audience were fully engaged, with no mid-show bathroom calls, so the length and creative delivery of the show was a wholesome treat for us all.

A useful downloadable resource pack is available on the Little Angel Theatre website along with a story board of the show.

Based on the book by Tim Hopgood
Adapted and directed by Joy Haynes
Creative Producer: Miranda Pitcher
Set and Costume Design by Fiammetta Horvat
Puppet Designed and Made by Keith Frederick
Music and Lyrics by Dominic Sales

WOW! Said the Owl is aimed at ages 2-5 years and runs at Little Angel Studios until Saturday 8 November.