An immersive retelling of The Pied Piper Of Hamelin for children and adults is no easy task, but My Darling Patricia (the company behind the puppeteered genius of Africa) pull it off in spectacular fashion.
The Piper delivers a modern twist on a favourite classic that adds an element of environmental consciousness and a great parody of political spin into the mix. They've also updated the Piper – it's a dancing bear (and Ghenoa Gela works so well in the suit North Sydney would still be in the NRL had the Piper been their mascot).
Anthony Ahern's farcically terrible Mayor provides plenty of political ha-has for the parents in the audience, his performance channelling a kind of Jim Carey-esque physical comedy that appeals to young and old.
Participant tickets see parents and children building up the town of Hamelin and tearing it down as the rats that soon plague the city. While these tickets offer a hands-on experience for some, there is more than enough to entertain the regular audience. As in productions of the past, My Darling Patricia have assembled a collage of forms – beautifully held together by Samuel James' animations – in order to construct their whimsical onstage world.
