It’s with the nutty animal puppets that the show brightens up and starts to feel livelier, more immediate and – crucially – a lot more fun. Puppet designer Judith Hope has worked with Les Enfants Terribles and there’s an anarchic and extravagant streak to her designs.
Read more

All Julia Donaldson adaptations are ultimately an exercise in making a book that takes five minutes to read last 45 or so minutes on stage. But the way ‘The Smartest Giant…’ goes about it really is lovely...
Read more

[Julia Donaldson's] songwriting roots shine through all her stories making them ideal for reading and singing out loud while Axel Scheffler’s instantly recognisable illustrations are perfect blueprints for puppets.
Read more

Gilbert Taylor and Lizzie Wort perform the puppetry and vocals with charm and a light touch. It might not be the most memorable story (at least for someone without any prior attachment to the material) but was warmly received by the young audience...
Read more