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A garden growing friendships Tom’s Midnight Garden Birmingham Stage Company The Old Rep, Birmingham **** PHILIPPA Pearce's 1950's classic is given
a new lease of life in this charming production by Birmingham Stage
Company. Premièred in Birmingham ten years ago, the
production has been given a makeover since then and is now bubbling with
life. It tells the story of youngster Tom who is sent
to stay with his aunt and uncle while his brother Peter recovers from
measles. While his aunt and uncle are well-meaning, Tom finds his new
home decidedly dull and is desperate to be allowed outdoors to play. So when he discovers a secret garden which
appears only at night, and a new playmate Hatty, his world suddenly
changes. Designed by Jacqueline Trousdale, the set takes
us back and forth between these two worlds with ease as we jump from
house to garden and through time. David Tute is an enthusiastic Tom who shifts from
boredom to excitement to wonder and yet succeeds in hiding all of this
from his aunt and uncle. Caitlin Thorburn plays a mischievous Hatty, a
little girl who is so unloved at home that she clings onto her new
friend as a gateway to her own happiness. Kate Adams as Aunt Gwen and Tom Jude as Uncle
Alan are thoroughly likeable if a little bewildered by their new guest. Adapted by David Wood and directed by BSC
actor/manager Neal Foster, the production keeps a fast pace with live
music provided by the cast members. At its heart lies the importance of friendship
which can come in any shape or guise. And when the final piece of the
mystery falls into place we realise that friendships can overcome time,
difference and distance – not a bad message for a Christmas show. To
27-01-14. Diane Parkes
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