Written by Oliver Jeffers
Adapted and Directed by Will Brenton
Music by Gruff Rhys
FACTORY INTERNATIONAL
At its heart Lost and Found is about the importance of imagination, communication and connection…the very things that form the essence of our humanity. Storytelling is how we help young children make sense of the world around them and hopefully imbibe them with a lifelong love of the Arts. Director Will Brenton has adapted this award winning children’s favourite by Oliver Jeffers for the stage and it is a truly magical experience.
Softly colourwashed staging combines a set that displays the detritus of washed up flotsam and jetsam. It also serves to cleverly disguise some of the live musicians on stage and allows for the ebb and flow of props such as boats, bathtubs and the Lost and Found office. Set and Costume Designer Jean Chan has beautifully evoked every page of this illustrated storybook in the most delightful manner. Moments where a characters’ arms stretch out like retractable hoses to grab packages or a gleaming bathtub that conjures up a yellow duck seem effortlessly natural and therefore suspend reality and immerse the audience further in the pages of this storybook.
Image credit: David Levene
The use of puppetry by Puppetry Director Olly Taylor sees seagulls move around the theatre interacting with the children in the audience and also driving the narrative during set changes. The performers imbibe them with an uncanny realism that is delightful. The sense of perspective and distance of the journey undertaken by the boy and the penguin is further enhanced by the small models used in conjunction with the animation by Keyframe Studios. The combination of movement, music, animation and puppetry fills this large stage while also giving the sense of soaring space that is the South Pole.
There are some lovely opportunities to interact with the young audience. A boat has missing elements which the children can help discover and one lucky child finds a vital piece under their seat requiring a trip unto the stage. Moments where the penguin mimics the boy create an almost Pantomime vibe. There are audible gasps as trees descend from above, and swirling mist and storms buffet the tiny rowing boat.
The boy and the penguin are delightful as they hesitantly develop a real friendship and come to understand each other. The whole production exudes a real charm and wimsy that builds the sense of childlike wonder. The music created by Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals builds the emotion and the real sense of scope being out on the ocean virtually alone. Musicians meander on to the stage coming together with a raggle taggle feel that echoes the coming together of a caille. There is a softness to the colours used in the set, and with the lighting and the soundscape that also seem carefully considered to make this production suitable for all children including any with neurodivergency or other sensory triggers. This is the first family show to feature in the programming at Factory International and it sets the bar high for future productions.
Live Art Alive 