The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe
Leeds Playhouse

FOR a novel that’s about good and evil, Michael Fentiman’s production of CS Lewis’s 1950 children’s classic is curiously monochromatic.

Casting the stage in long shadows makes sense during the opening scenes, when the four Pevensie children are being evacuated during WWII. Reflecting national fear and uncertainty, we see them boarding a miniature stream train that’s borne aloft by a chorus of hands, unsure if or when they’ll ever see their parents again.

The dark lighting makes less sense when the children arrive at a house in the country and are transported to Narnia through a wardrobe. The colour palette here makes the land feel anything but magical, despite the presence of talking animals and the state of perpetual winter.

There are tantalising moments of colour, with red blocks of Turkish Delight forming a dancing monster that taunts the treacherous Edmund Pevensie (Bunmi Osadolor), and the White Witch’s allies discovering their hair and skirts have turned green with incoming spring. These pops of colour grow into nothing, even during times of celebration, which creates an emotional flatness to the revival of Sally Cookson’s 2017 production.

The mood isn’t helped by Katy Stephens’ lack of stage presence or haughty imperiousness as the White Witch. False ruler of Narnia, she fails to inspire fear even when she shoots into the rafters, lengths of white fabric doubling as skirt and snowy landscape. The lion Aslan, the land’s true ruler, also fails to create awe, despite being played by both a full-scale puppet and being voiced by Stanton Wright in fur coat. 

One of the few scenes in which Jack Knowles’ lighting and mood gel is when the Witch’s allies surround Aslan prior to his sacrifice. Whirling around the stage on all fours with hand stilts and giant skull headdresses, thunderous percussion is used to nightmarish effect. Music is truly integral here, although the strong presence of folk songs throughout rarely injects tension or carries forward the plot.

This leaves the show with individual scenes that are impressive but an overall sense of disappointment. It packs plenty of action, with fights and physical movement driving forward the plot, but it has no emotional peaks or connection with the central characters, making it a rare misfire for the Leeds Playhouse’s Christmas extravaganza. 

Runs until January 25 2025. Box office: (0113) 213-7700, leedsplayhouse.org.uk.