Most will be familiar with Morpurgo and his books, especially War Horse, but many may not be familiar with The Butterfly Lion. I have to confess that I was in this camp until today.
War Horse has been a huge success for the National Theatre, so you can appreciate the pressure this production was under to deliver a show that would step out from the shadows of War Horse.
Now I don't want to give away too much, but just to give you the gist it starts with a boy escaping from his boarding school who bumps into Millie, an old widower. Whilst seeking shelter Millie tells him about the story of Bertie (her husband) and the butterfly lion. When growing up in Africa, Bertie rescues a white lion cub and they grow to become great friends. Sadly when Bertie has to leave for boarding school his father makes him sell the lion. Will they meet again? Well that would be giving away the story.
So who helped to bring this riveting story to life? Fresh from drama school Adam Buchanan as Bertie and the runaway school boy and Gwen Taylor as Millie made the performance unforgettable. What I particularly enjoyed was both actors terrific turns at playing younger roles and Adam's natural ability to work with the puppet lion. Its a real testament to both actors and their versatility as performers. I, and probably half the audience, expected the younger version of Millie to be played by a younger actress, but it was so refreshing that this wasn't the case and Gwen Taylor's transformation from elderly woman to young girl was fantastic.
It's not just the great acting or the amazing puppets that bring it to life, but Morpurgo's storytelling talent. Without his imagination or strong characterisation there would have been no amazing production.
The standing ovation at the end was well and truly deserved - first I've ever seen at the Cambridge Arts Theatre. I've got my fingers crossed for a transfer to London.
