Showing @ Citizens Theatre, Glasgow until Sat 7 Jan
Go for a saunter down the woods in my locale and you’d be more likely to stumble across a burnt out fiesta surrounded by a few empty bottles of tonic wine than a gingerbread house. But follow the trail of breadcrumbs to the Gorbals this season and you’ll find that their forest is sprinkled with mellifluous melodies and a cast with more punch than your Granny’s Christmas tipple.
Alan McHugh’s version of the Brothers Grimm’s Hansel and Gretel sees the evil Vanya (Jennifer Harraghy) transform from a one hundred year old hag to a manipulating temptress in an attempt to win Peter’s (Jim Sturgeon) heart. But what of his delightful children Hansel and Gretel (David Carlyle and Gemma McElhinney)? Well, you know how the story goes.
Ignoring a scene in the second act that can only be described as a limp wolf fight, Guy Hollands’ production is sleek and soulful. Carlyle and McElhinney’s Hansel and Gretel have a chemistry that makes their charming cheekiness absorbing while Harraghy is sumptuously commanding as Vanya. The student ensemble are mightily impressive too, notably Sarah Kennedy and Philip David Atkinson as Vanya’s mischievous magpies. With a powerful, folk-inspired score, courtesy of Claire McKenzie, and Neil Haynes’ cosy and colourful set, this Hansel and Gretel is the perfect alternative to panto-land.