REVIEW: The Lost World, Lytham Hall
Outdoor theatre fans were treated to a stunning display of inventiveness and charm as prehistoric animals and Edwardian adventurers alike were brought convincingly - and quirkily - to life.
The ingenuity displayed by the Illyria theatre company, was immediately evident, as just six actors (who between them took on all roles) and some simple props, conveyed Arthur Conan Doyle’s epic 1912 adventure of dinosaur exploration.
And the Georgian splendour of Lytham Hall was the perfect backdrop for this ripping yarn of imperialist zeal.
The dinosaurs were, like everything else, simply done with imagination and humour. Pterodactyls were formed from umbrellas and a pair of tongs, but with these skilled handlers, they lived and breathed.
The archaic and stilted dialogue and narration took the audience, many already ensconced with picnic baskets, tables and chairs, back this golden age. But the language was probably above the heads of some of younger children.
JAMES READER