Play Book by David Grieg

Lyrics by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman

Directed by Samuel Holmes and Nick Winston

Review by Annie Aslett

Tickets from £13.00

Audiences looking for Chocolate Factory content are spoiled for choice at the moment: Paul King’s Wonka dazzles in cinemas, and Glasgow audiences can now feast on the delights of Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in this musical adaptation, whisked from the West End and directed for the UK tour by James Brining. This is Dahl’s classic tale reimagined for the stage, sprinkled with a mixture of original and brand-new songs that breathe new life into this well-known story, ready for Glasgow audiences to take a bite. 

The first act is a triumph. Simon Higlett’s set design brings Charlie Bucket’s world to life in a series of tableaus whose aesthetic can only be described as ‘depressing whimsy’. The Buckets are asset-poor but have no lack of love to give, and we spend the first hour falling in love with Charlie, her mother, and her grandparents as they learn about Willy Wonka’s Golden Ticket competition and the undeserving rabble of children who find the shiny prizes. Without a doubt, the most magnetic presence on the stage is Jessie–Lou Harvie as Charlie Bucket. The role of Charlie is shared between four young actors – if Jessie-Lou Harvie’s portrayal is indicative of the rest, audiences are in for a delight every night. Harvie, from Blantyre, makes her stage debut as Charlie in this touring production, and her Scottish brogue adds extra charm to her determined and sincere portrayal of young Charlie. Playing the budding inventor, Harvie’s Charlie is infused with warmth, drawing the audience into her world and making us root for her from the first song. Harvie’s vocal performance is also excellent – as charming as unfaltering.

The other Buckets provide a steadfast group for Charlie to lean on, with an experienced cast working together to create an endearing family unit. Michael D’Cruze is an enthusiastic Grandpa Joe – Cruze plays the 90-year-old with childlike abandon and feels precisely authentic to the character from the original book. The Buckets’ collective love for Wonka chocolate bars and desire to win a golden ticket, spearheaded by Charlie and Grandpa Joe, fill the audience with the same sense of excitement and wonder at imagining what is behind those factory gates. 

Special mention is to be given to the creative decisions which seamlessly includes British Sign Language in the show. This effort is captained on stage by Leonie Spilbury as Mrs Bucket, who signs as well as vocalises her lines, as other characters, especially Charlie, occasionally sign on specific words, such as ‘rhino’ and ‘birthday’, thereby teaching the audience. It is encouraging to see this in a production whose audience is all ages. Having BSL included so effortlessly, in such an understated but definitive manner, is a masterclass in how to create an inclusive production.

At the end of the first act, we finally meet Mr Wonka, played with unbridled kookiness by Gareth Snook. Snook is full of energy and plays the chocolatier with the same twinkle in his eye as the best Wonka’s before him. The occasional lapse comes as the audience struggles to make out some of Scott Wittman’s lyrics, as the pace of Charle and the Chocolate Factory’s songs seems to emulate the frantic whirring of his mind. Nonetheless, as the first half closes with Wonka’s madcap introductory speech outside the gates, the audience is as excited as Charlie and Grandpa Joe to step into Wonka’s factory. 

The first half writes a cheque that the second half doesn’t quite manage to cash. The task of bringing the Chocolate Factory to life on stage, especially as a touring production, is mammoth. In this production, the factory mostly exists on the big screens that extend from the back of the stage out onto the floor, with the graphics often relying on the audience’s willingness to use their imagination as the actors interact with the 2D set. Simon Wainwright’s video design is at its best as the group travels from floor to floor on the elevator, but at times struggles to convey the enchanting world that exists in much higher definition in the imagination of the audience than it does on screen. 

The show also makes use of puppetry to varying degrees of success – the best coming from Leonie Spilsbury’s other role as Mrs Teevee, whose reaction to her newly miniaturised son is one of the show’s funniest moments. In stark contrast, the inclusion of an extra-large exercise ball covered in purple lycra, crowned with a floppy-necked, grotesque screen print of Violet Beauregarde’s face, causes the show to lurch into the amateur. This does remind us that this is a show aimed at children, a demographic much more willing to laugh and play along than the theatre critic. 

The fact that the production suffers from comparison to previous iterations of the factory seen on the silver screen is unavoidable but understandable given the vast difference in budgets and media. The graphics and special effects here are serviceable, however, putting this limitation to one side, the staging is vivid, delicious, impactful, and more than sufficient to enthral its younger audience. As an evening out for the family, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is unbeatable entertainment. Don’t miss out on the chance to see this show at the King’s Theatre, playing until 4th February. 

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