Reviewed by William age 12

“I am here to interrupt this show with breaking news. Cherry, where are you now?”

Well, Jerry I’m sat in my office, writing up a review of the wonderful stage show that I saw yesterday, it was none other than Roald Dahl’s Charlie And The Chocolate Factory – The Musical, right from the start this show was filled with wondrous songs and music, a delight to watch.

The Show On The Whole

The first thing that made this show truly unique was the portrayal of Charlie Bucket as a girl, a change that I thought was a truly magical twist on a story that has been ensnaring readers for over 60 years.

Right from the opening number to the final curtain call Amelia Minto’s portrayal of this iconic character was a joy to see and hear. My sister’s now all want to play Charlie on stage one day!

One of my favourite set pieces was the family home of the Bucket Family, with the Grandpas and Grandmas in a bed upstairs while Charlie and her mum slept, talked and ate below. The bucket lift that transported cabbage soup to the grandparents’ bed was a fun play on the family surname. I was rather perplexed at the removal of Charlie’s dad from the story.

Another of my highlights was the way in which we were introduced to the other four Golden Ticket winners through the wireless news channel.

I also thought that the TV screens on the side of the stage which were displaying locations, Jerry the presenter’s face and, occasionally, even the TV Show’s credits were a nice addition to the play.

As for the second half, I thought that Willy Wonka was wonderfully portrayed by Gareth Snook and his rendition of Pure Imagination was a wonderful song magically presented.

This song was swiftly followed by the loss of Augustus Gloop and an impressive trip down the Chocolate River that was powered by screen projections that made it look like the boat was actually moving down the river.

This led the remaining characters along with the enchanted audience swiftly into the Mixing Room where Violet Beauregade was lost after eating a prototype gum that was strictly not to be tasted and turning into a Blueberry. My little sister Edie was most looking forward to Violet’s song Juicy! which sadly was not included in this production of the story.

Following Willy Wonka through his Chocolate Factory we soon came to the Nut Room, where an incredibly cute squirrel was sorting the good nuts from the Bad Nuts! It was in this room that Veruca Salt was overcome by an irresistible desire for one of these highly skilled mammalian factory operatives and, while climbing up to steal one, was declared a Bad Nut! herself. Meaning that after another song she was sent down the Bad Nut! shoot which was, happily, diverted to the incinerator on Mondays (It was a Monday!).

Following the Nut Room, we passed Square Sweets That Look Round, Easter Pigs that are used for Easter Bacon (to go with Easter Eggs).

Then we arrived at the Chocolate TV Room, which was the end of the adventures of Mike Teavee due to him successfully transmitting himself into a TV before gleefully channel-hopping for a minute or two, losing a computer game before being taken out of the television by a medicated Mrs. Teavee.

Despite having lost a few children along the way, Mr. Willy Wonka, Grandpa Joe and Charlie eventually reached the Imagination Room and an argument began between the two men about Charlie’s prize, which, in a trip on the Great Glass Elevator is revealed to be the entire Chocolate Factory, Oompa Loompas and all.

My Thoughts On The Characters

Charlie Bucket
Wow! Charlie Bucket, what a performance, Amelia Minto was just incredible from her opening number to her joyous wave that closed the show, her portrayal of this classic children’s character will stay with me for life. Her singing was the music of the night for me. Thank you Amelia, thank you very much.

Grandpa Joe
Grandpa Joe was a funny and loveable character with a warm connection to Charlie. They were a joy to watch as they humbly tried their luck at finding a golden ticket and then experienced all the wonders within Willy Wonka’s factory.

Mr. Willy Wonka
A terrible performance! “No, strike that and reverse it! I meant the other way”

Mr Wonka was my second favourite character after Charlie Bucket. From his marvellous singing to some of his slightly more comic lines, he impressed from his mysterious entrance to his final hug with Charlie. He was just wondrous to watch and had lots of magical tricks up his sleeve to charm the characters and the audience.

Veruca Salt and Violet Beauregarde
I thought that Veruca Salt was wonderfully skilled at acting spoiled and brattish, she was also very good at using a toddler voice to plead for one of Mr. Wonka’s squirrels. Veruca Salt is also a skilled ballerina. Violet Beauregarde’s inflating costume was brilliantly designed and I liked her Princess of Pop song.

Augustus Gloop and Mike Teavee
Augustus Gloop’s German accent was well performed and held while singing, as was Mike Teavee’s American one. The boys performed their songs well and Mike Teavee’s shrinking and channel-hopping was cleverly staged, with Mike Teavee being involved in a Pac-man style computer game at the end of the song.

Other Characters
Of the other characters I thought that the Grandparents were brilliantly staged and acted by the cast and crew, as was Charlie’s mum. However, the lack of Mr Bucket surprised me quite a bit, I wonder why they removed him?

Two other characters I liked were Jerry and Cherry, the newsreader and his on-scene correspondent who interviewed each ticket winner individually. On the whole the minor characters were well performed and accurately reflected their original forms in the books.

In Conclusion
I thought that this show was a wonderful production that gave originality to this classic tale as well as staying true to the heart of the original story. The cast performed their parts very well and I thought the music was good, if not what I expected.

This is a fantastic fun and funny family show.

Book your Golden Tickets now as it is on UK & Ireland tour until the 4th of February 2024.

What are you waiting for?

“No time to dally when wonders await.”