CS Lewis once wrote: “A children’s story that can only be enjoyed by children is not a good children’s story in the slightest.” Having recently watched and thoroughly enjoyed the stage adaptation of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe at Woking’s New Victoria Theatre, one can see how timeless the story is.  

The tale starts with a moving rendition of Dame Vera Lynn’s classic We’ll Meet Again, creating a feeling of deep sadness that compels you to find out what will happen next.  

This enchanting story is set during world war two, following four children as they evacuate from London to Scotland and stay with a peculiar, quirky professor.

Whilst exploring the house, Lucy, the youngest child, hides in a wardrobe that transcends her into a magical frozen world. Narnia is covered in deep thick snow and unique talking woodland animals. Lucy tries to tell her siblings about her adventures, but they just put it down to childhood imagination. Edmund, her older brother, later follows Lucy through the wardrobe but meets the White Witch who temps him to her side with an abundance of Turkish Delight. He then agrees to bring his siblings back to meet her at the castle. After much deliberation, all four children end up in Narnia, with Edmund betraying Lucy and her newfound animal friends. Aslan, a magnificent, beautiful Lion, who is the all-knowing and all-seeing leader of Narnia, returns to help Edmund make the right choice in the course of the battle between good and evil.

Kudos must be given to the set designers, cast, and musicians for creating this magical family fantasy and bringing to life in such an enchanting way on stage.

The powerful entrance from Samantha Womack (Ronnie Mitchell, Eastenders) as the icy, villainous White Witch was unforgettable. My children stared intently and dreamily watched her beautiful white costume fill centre stage. You could feel the audience intake a sharp breath as she came thundering out on a chariot, her white gown floating beside her, enthralling and captivating.

The brilliant puppeteers alongside Aslan made the Lion feel extremely real with his huge paws padding down over the set and his tail drifting side to side whilst he talked. Chris Jared spoke with feeling and a sense of authority, as one has come to expect from the great leader Aslan. Illusions were also performed when the character seemed to disappear and then reappeared somewhere else, ensuring loud gasps around the theatre. My daughter was captivated, trying to work out how he had switched places without her noticing.

Sam Buttery as Mr Beaver had the whole venue laughing with his witty one-liners and modern references such as wondering why the children were wearing “detachable fur” when they took their coats off, and how unfair he felt it was by being given only socks and pants for Christmas rather than swords! Luckily Mrs Beaver was there to inform him that they were in fact, just fur coats.

Lighting was superb and every detail was accounted for. Even the beloved professor’s cat felt real as it danced and moved across the stage, a personal favourite of my seven-year-old. 

This was a magical, wholesome and fun-filled family theatre production that would appeal to the youngest of theatregoers and to CS Lewis enthusiasts of all ages, alike.  

[Emily Martin, March 2022]

The Lion, The Watch and The Wardrobe was at Woking’s New Victoria theatre from 22-26 March