How do you get a tiger on stage? All it takes is a little piece of Pi

ALL the major London theatre owners have been hot-footing it to the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield to see the ingenious stage version of Yann Martel’s psychological fantasy novel Life Of Pi.

I was totally enraptured by director Max Webster’s breathtaking production, based on Lolita Chakrabarti’s luminous adaptation, and featuring mindblowing sets by Tim Hatley. There’s extraordinary puppetry by Finn Caldwell and Nick Barnes; and vivid lighting, sound and video design by Tim Lutkin, Carolyn Downing and Andrzej Goulding.

It’s the story of a shipwrecked lad, played by a marvellous Hiran Abeysekera (pictured). Life Of Pi is simple, magnificent storytelling. Simon Friend, who owns the rights, oversaw several workshops over a three-year period to get it right.

‘It’s not an adaptation of Ang Lee’s film. It’s a story about a boy with a tiger on a boat that has been created by Max, Lolita, Tim Hatley, the puppeteers and all the designers,’ said Friend.

He is in early negotiations to take it to the West End next year. Out of this world things happen to Hatley’s set, so he will have to pick his auditorium carefully.

Interesting that the best work these days is not being done in our national houses, but in regional theatres and off West End sites.