10/10/2025

We made a rare visit to the Waterside Theatre, to watch “The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe“. It is a tradition for some of us in the village to watch the progress of the actor “Stanton Wright“. We have seen him perform in “All or Nothing“, a story of the band Small Faces. Then in London we watched him perform in “Pictures of Dorian Gray“. More recently he had several parts in the “Kite Runner” which I saw in Oxford.

In this show he starred as Aslan the Lion, as well as having other small parts as a Soldier and a Hedgehog.

The special effects of this production were extremely ingenious & magical, from suitcases with holes cut in them to form windows in an effect that looked like carriages in a train, to the animation of Aslan and the amazing witch’s platform, which launched her to soar high up. All of this performance was accompanied by live music, played by the actors as they performed the play. Yes, many of the actors are also accomplished musicians.

After the event we were invited backstage to take a close look at the costumes & props. I have never been behind stage before and was absolutely astounded by the organised chaos, and the height of the stage. The number of ropes, for hoisting and moving scenery, all the electronic sound equipment and then the actual props. The props, especially Aslan, were formidable creations.

The show moves on in the next few days, It takes five pantechnicons to move all the equipment, props and costumes!