We took our almost 3 year old (and our 4 month old) to see The (Kiwi) Gingerbread Man on Saturday and had a blast!
The play is a decidedly kiwi take on the old classic, with a few twists thrown in for good measure. Written by Guy Langford, this version of the tale begins in Grandma’s, and Nana’s kitchen and takes us on a journey through the New Zealand forest at night.
Once out in the forest, the Gingerbread Man tries to find his true purpose in the world. He meets all manner of kiwi critters along the way, including a curious kiwi, a moon-loving possum, a very sleepy weta and a clever tuatara.
I’m liking
The play is really well put together, with tons of opportunity for children to get involved. Although there was a smallish crowd on the opening afternoon, the kids really got into it and provided plenty of improv for the cast of 3. It was clear looking around the parents and grandparents were enjoying themselves too.
There were plenty of laugh-out-loud moments and the play has an important and positive theme running right through it. The cast are really engaging with the audience, who warmed up quickly to the interaction. There was even a classic pantomime moment where all the kids screamed, ‘look out behind you!’ I honestly thought that only happened in the movies…
Things that made me go hmmmm
There were some parts of the script, and some of the song lyrics, that were pitched way too high for this group. At the opening afternoon show, most of the kids would have been 6 and under, with most more around 3 or 4. Some of the lines about ‘existentialism’ were clearly for the adults, but other parts of the script just flew over the kids’ heads. Still, just a minor criticism. It didn’t affect the rhythm of the show too much, and the kids didn’t seem to notice.
The conclusion
Our 3 year old absolutely enjoyed this one and was totally engaged throughout, which is saying something for that age! Definitely worth an outing this school holidays.
The (Kiwi) Gingerbread Man is presented by Kidz Stuff Theatre.
