Slung Low has been developing curious, amusing and ambitious work over the last few years, pioneering the use of sound technology. This new piece, their first for children, sees them employ their trademark headphones to bring audiences aged seven plus on an adventure around the foyer areas of the Barbican, in a quest to save Christmas from a supposedly evil professor hell bent on ruining the festivities.
Having donned our headsets we hear the sounds of our hero, Jack (in a nod to panto tradition he is played by a woman), calling out ‘Goosey’. Our heads turn 360 degrees searching out the performer we can hear so clearly. This technique is one of the magical elements of this gorgeously conceived and warmly performed journey. A golf cart that’s been kitted out Christmas-style drives towards us, a Christmas tree zooms in and out of a corridor, and a mini train with a life of its own spurts the evil pink smoke down the stairs, on the balcony above our heads and far into the distance, each time taking us by surprise.
As the audience is addressed by the commander of the Royal Christmas Brigade, we learn that it will be our jobs to help Jack save Christmas. We do this by ‘Christmas creeping’ around the Barbican (right hand behind your head jingling your fingers with left hand straight out), where we bump into an elf who has been programmed to break toys instead of make them, a snowman who has forgotten all his Christmas songs, and a fairy on top of a giant Christmas tree who doesn’t think she’s beautiful anymore.
Where the traditional pantos and Christmas shows across the land invite us to empathise with our hero or heroine, Slung Low has created a performance in which we are the heroes. We make Christmas decorations to cheer up the Christmas tree fairy and reprogramme the elf, sing Jingle Bells as an impromptu choir and work together for an hour to make the show happen. Whilst highly impressive in style, the heart of the work is rooted firmly in Christmas entertainment tradition – it’s like an interactive cross between The Wizard of Oz and Jack and the Beanstalk.
The company does not shy away from an old school message, firmly reminding us that Christmas is about family, love and cherishing the great things you have around you. This juxtaposition of incredibly complex staging, utilising state of the art technology to tell a simple and quite old-fashioned story results in its triumph. It is a joyous and charming piece of work that should become part of Britain’s theatrical Christmas tradition.