On a space adventure
> Children’s book illustrator Oliver Jeffers’ The Way Back Home comes to life in a new stage production for all ages
BRITISH children’s theatre production company Big Wooden Horse is back in Malaysia with a whimsical play based on award-winning illustrator Oliver Jeffers’ book The Way Back Home.
The story is about a boy (played by grown-up Harrison Spiers in this stage production) who imagines himself as a pilot and ends up building a spaceship.
The Boy then flies high into the sky but crashes into the Moon when his spaceship runs out of petrol.
He is found by the friendly Martian (Charlotte Cooper) who seems to have had aircraft problems as well.
Together, they come up with a plan to float the Boy back down to Earth to collect his toolbox, and he then has to find his way back to the Moon to help his friend.
Essentially, The Way Back Home is a story about a child’s imagination and the power of friendship.
Getting the children in the audience to interact with the actors was easy enough, as we witnessed during one recent show.
The set for the play is minimal, with just two small cabinets that serve various functions during the show, and one large bookshelf attached to a cupboard that the boy keeps going in and out of.
Speaking to the media afterwards, the two stars said they did have to bring in the main props, such as the airplane and spaceship, while the other props were sourced locally.
Spiers and Cooper are both children’s theatre veterans. While Cooper was here last year on tour with Big Wooden Horse for Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!, this is Spiers’ first time in Asia.
Referring to the actors’ interaction with the children, Cooper said: “[The children] do it naturally, but sometimes you need to lead [them].”
She added that the tone of the actor’s voice helps.
She referred to one part in the story as an example.
The scene had her character getting the children to help pass a rope to the Boy but when she required them to let the rope go, her voice turned from child-like to schoolteacher stern.
Considering that his role requires him to go in and out of the cupboard several times in the show, we asked Spiers if he experienced any mishaps.
“Couple of times, there have been some issues with the microphone, or I got struck,” said Spiers.
“So Charlotte [Cooper] had to improvise. But – touch wood – it has been fine so far in Asia.”
For Cooper, her biggest problem is the green facepaint that Spiers applies on her face during the show to turn her into a Martian.
“Here, due to the humidity, it doesn’t really come out,” Copper explained while pointing out the slight yellowish tinge on her skin.
For their current Asian tour, the duo have so far performed for two and a half weeks in Singapore before going on a four week break. Their Malaysian leg of the tour will cover three weeks with two shows in Penang.
The Way Back Home is playing at PJ Live Arts in Jaya One, Petaling Jaya, until Sunday. For more, visit the PJ Live Arts website.