The Bear Pit does more than justice to this popular story.
- Charles Essex
- 12 minutes ago
- 2 min read
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. At The Bear Pit Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, from 5 to 14 December 2025.
Directed by Emily Myerscough.
Review by Charles Essex
Adrian Mitchell’s dramatisation of CS Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the allegory of the Gospel story, gave The Bear Pit’s cast and crew a challenge which they met in spades. The four main roles of Peter (Harry Sinclair). Susan (Georgia Hood), Edmund (Hal Sandle-Keynes) and Lucie (Millie Lowe) have a huge amount of dialogue. Yet these young actors were, along with the rest of the cast, word perfect in their roles.
Harry and Hal contrasted ideally the integrity and shiftiness, respectively, of the characters they portrayed and conveyed the conflict between them. Georgia and Millie gave Susan and Lucie, respectively, the gentleness and compassion that were quintessential to the roles. All four actors were miked up which made a huge difference and overcame any potential drop in projection.
There were some wonderful supporting performances that built on the foundation the lead actors provided. Joseph Frerichs as Mr Tumnus carried a cheerfulness tinged with sadness at the state of Narnia under the oppression of the White Witch (Daisy Swalby), who was suitably villainous. Joseph impressed by walking on the balls of his feet as a fawn whenever he was on stage.
Roger Ganner was in top form as Mr Beaver, with wonderful characterisation, gestures, facial expressions and movement. He and Siȃn McDonald Marr as Mrs Beaver were a great double act as they hustled and bustled around the stage. Brian Darnley as pipe-smoking Professor Kirk was delightfully eccentric, while Aslan, a key character in the second act, was given the right amount of gravitas, ferocity and kindness by Chris Gilbey-Smith.
Director Emily Myerscough brought the very best out of this large cast. The costuming and set were excellent. The ensemble, all of whom took on several roles, showed they were superbly rehearsed and the choreographed pieces went like clockwork. The music and the solos, by Millie, Joseph and Chris, enhanced the production.
CS Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a popular story and the sell out-run meant that expectations were high and The Bear Pit did not disappoint. The Bear Pit has put on some great productions over the years, but this is up on the podium as one of their best.
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