Jack And The Magic Beans

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JOYCE MCMILLAN on JACK AND THE MAGIC BEANS at the Lemon Tree, Aberdeen, for The Scotsman, 21.12.11
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4 stars ****

THEY SAY that a good piece of theatre should open up a new world for audiences, and invite them straight into it; but it’s rare to see a show that explores that idea so thoroughly, and so magically, as this year’s Lemon Tree show for younger Christmas audiences, aged around four to eight. Co produced by Aberdeen Performing Arts and the Scottish Youth Theatre, Jack And The Magic Beans is a variation on the Jack And The Beanstalk story, made to accompany this year’s big panto at His Majesty’s Theatre; and if it begins hesitantly – with a long introduction from Brad Morrison’s slightly tentative Merlock The Magician – it soon opens up, with a wonderful small coup-de-theatre, into a real promenade theatre experience for younger children, in which we follow Merlock into the world inhabited by Jack, beautifully played by Scott Miller, and his cheerful Mum (Michelle Bruce), always ready with a song and a hug.

The magic beans provided by Merlock don’t always behave in predictable ways, in this version of the story; they’re not above producing a giant spud instead of a beanstalk, and suddenly expanding to the size of a brightly-coloured beanbag. If the narrative sometimes seems convoluted, though, the use of music, songs and spells is near-perfect, drawing the audience straight into the action, whether we’re stirring a pot of giant stew, planting the magic beans, or accompanying Jack on his daily march down to the shed once once inhabited by his beloved cow. And director Fraser MacLeod and his team can take pride in a show that obviously loves the tale of Jack and the beanstalk, even as it works out a few bold variations on it; and is perfectly designed to give audiences of children a gorgeous, three-dimensional theatrical experience, designed specially for them.

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