We were invited down to Sadlers Wells in Holborn to watch Raymond Brigg’s The Snowman, and having seen it many years ago, we were very excited.
For years now it has become a tradition of ours to watch this show on TV and last year was Ita’s first time watching it too. She vaguely remembered the story, especially the fact that there are no words, so I did wonder how she would find the theatre adaptation. Funnily enough, she was able to describe The Snowman is great detail though which demonstrates just how synonymous it has become with Christmas.
In short, she thoroughly loved it! We all did.
As mentioned, having seen this show years ago, we knew that there would be many children attending. Our understanding is that this show has become hugely popular with families so you shouldn’t expect a totally silent production. In fact, if you do not have young children yourself, then we would recommend booking a later show. With that said, we would still recommend this Christmas show whether you have children or not! The sounds from the children in the theatre didn’t take away from seeing the show at all.
The only “problem” (which really wasn’t much of a problem) that we encountered was that there were no booster seats at all and with having a small child with us, we felt she may have benefitted from one. The auditorium is slanted though which helps with viewing.
The theatre show is very much like the short film. It begins when a little boy builds a snowman that comes to life at night. The Snowman takes the boy on an adventurous night meeting the likes of Jack Frost, dancing fruits, woodland animals and Santa himself! It was so heartwarming to see Ita gasp when Santa appeared on stage!
Ita was laughing throughout the scene with the dancing fruit and was clapping her way through the scene with the ballerina and toy soldier. I personally loved the ice princess and her ballet performance.
The opening scene where The Snowman comes to life is so cleverly done. It amazes me how you can completely understand a story without words.
We were all mesmerised by the beautiful music from the live orchestra which felt overwhelming when “Walking in the Air” was played. When The Snowman and the boy were elevated into the air the whole auditorium started clapping.
The dancing and ballet scenes are stunning. The choreography has been done in such a way that it is entertaining for children whilst being complex enough for adults to appreciate to.
The Snowman is recommended for all ages. I did feel some of the children struggled to sit through the performance of 1 hour and 50 minutes (with a 20 minute interval) but Ita’s attention was completely captured through the entire performance so I do think it is dependant on each child.
If you are going to see just one festive theatre show this season, make sure it is The Snowman. This will definitely we a yearly tradition for us now.
Tickets are still available – link below.
https://www.sadlerswells.com/whats-on/2019/the-snowman/booking
Garcia Family UK 