Took my son to watch the play by SRT's junior arm - The Little Company. True to it's target audience, at least half the turnout were kids.The play had a boring conversational beginning with the kids, Ruth and Raoul played by Stephen Whiley & Julie Wee bantering like typical kid siblings would.
The funny and at times witty lines were lost on the younger kids in the audience.
Enters Dr. MacCavity played by Judee Tan, came the gripping lighting and sound effects. The setting together with the very realistically uglifying make up of Dr. MacCavity had my son totally sucked in and within moments he panicked, trembled in fear and wanted to get out of the theatre!
No amount of hugging and soothing could convince him to stay in the act and soon i had to take him out so as not to disrupt the enjoyment of the other audience.
As we were leaving the theatre, he spat out the candy i had given him just moments ago to pacify him because Dr. MacCavity said she would take the rotten teeth of kids who ate candy. My son was COMPLETELY freaked out!
One usher was very kind and came up to me when i was at the foyer soothing my son. She told me I could go back in whenever he was ready to and take a seat further in the back so he would not be at such close proximity to the 'evil' MacCavity.
We finally went back in when MacCavity left the stage and enjoyed the following scenes where Ruth, Raoul and the tooth fairy got acquainted and ensued to leave for Fairyland.
The graceful while animated Fairy, played by Tiffany Wrightson, who obviously is a trained ballerina enchanted the kids. Erstwhile, Ruth and Raoul engaged the audience with interactive sessions where we had to help them with certain tasks by either clapping, shouting or following instructions.
The sequence of hip hop, rap style performance also got many tiny hands and feet clapping and stamping.
Despite having to leave the theatre on several occasions that Dr. MacCavity made her appearace, my son enjoyed the play and even agreed later on that MacCavity was no longer scary (she smiled at the ending cast intro).
As a mom of an overly engaged and sensitive toddler, I also appreciated the initiative of the ushers who were helpful in trying to pacify my frightened son and even pre-empted me about MacCavity's appearance at the audience floor so that I was able to avoid further traumatizing my frightened child.
The best part of this play? My boy is now highly cooperative about keeping his teeth clean so that Dr. MacCavity would not be able to visit him for his rotten tooth :)
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