I watched Dexter and Winter’s Detective Agency with my four year old daughter and can honestly say she loved every minute. The recommended age is four plus and I was unsure she would sit through the entirety without becoming a little bored. This was not the case at all, with a run time of approximately fifty minutes, it was the ideal length for a child of her age.
The show tells the tale of Dexter and his mum, the latter being sent to prison for getting mixed up in a jewellery robbery. Dexter and his best friend Winter set out to investigate the crime and prove his mum's innocence.
The play was performed in the round, converting the Emlyn Williams Theatre space into a round dome. The LED lights connected to the roof were used to give a very disco feel to the whole performance and the sound surrounded the whole audience adding to the immersive feel of the show. A light fog was used throughout, pumping in from under the seats. The fog created a mysterious effect mirroring the mystery the characters had to solve. The sound combined a mixture of sound FX and contempory music, it was so well timed with the actors on stage. This was clearly shown when at the start we see the jewellery heist and the breaks in the music are used for the actors to slide across the stage or freeze as if dodging laser beams. It was certainly a fun beginning in a show that never stopped.
The intense energy of the actors and the pace of the performance left me exhausted just watching the perfromers. Annie-Lunnette Deakin-Foster, the movement director has certainly put the actors through their paces. The physicality of the roles is superb, she combines physical theatre with some gymnastic style movements to create choreography that is highly engaging. The pace meant the younger audience members were always engaged.
The trio of actors Toyin Omari-Kinch, Charlotte O’Leary and Charlotte Bate, do a fantastic job of keeping the energy of the piece at a high. The trio never leave the performance area which helps to involve the audience. They sit next to you in the audience and fully interact with the audience meaning the younger viewers are kept enthralled. A particular moment that was a big hit with the younger ones was the point the cast got some water guns and sprayed the whole audience. There were squeals of delight from everyone and really gave a playful feel to the whole piece.
Charlotte Bate deserves special mention for her truly fantastic array of accents and characterisations. She played Dexter's Mother as well as a barage of other characters, from a Liverpudlian Landlady to an Australian charity worker. Her characters were always convincing and wonderfully physical. Her Granny Annie had us all up on our feet, squatting and waving our arms around like we just didn’t care.
Nathan Bryon, the writer, has worked on numerous Cbeebies shows such as 'Rastamouse', 'Swashbuckle' and 'Apple Tree House'. His Cbeebies roots could be clearly seen in this show, from the language used to the contempory references to Stormzy. It was a fun and fast paced narrative yet had a really touching ending with a lovely take away message, no-one's perfect and we all make mistakes no matter what our age.
I can not recommend this show enough. If you have a child between the ages of four to eleven, take them. They will laugh, they will jump, they will see some wonderful movement work but they will take away an important message and what’s even better is that you as a parent will enjoy it too.
Reviewer - Francesca Eager
on - 2/7/19
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