THEATRE REVIEW: The Ocean At The End Of The Lane - The Lowry Theatre, Salford.

Where does one start when wanting to adapt something so imaginative, vivid, and perhaps cinematic, to the confines of a stage production. Reading a novel, the imagination is limitless, with cinema, there are possibilities beyond what a theatre production can provide; and this novel concerns iteself with dark fantasy, the supernatural, and gives us an impressionistic 'post-monsterish' version of that blur between childhood and adulthood, as we never truly know whether or not the unfolding events are actual or extended dreams of an 11-year-old boy who reads lots of fantasy fiction.

The story as told by The National Theatre is not exactly the same as the novel, but resembles it very closely; however, the production is utterly flawless from start to finish, the NT excelling themselves here. This is a truly wholistic production, where sound, lighting, effects, costume, set, and goodness knows what else combine and merge with puppetry, physical theatre, dance, magic, and some of the most compelling acting I've seen in a long time, building tension, suspense, and drama in carefully considered layers.

We start at a funeral. Our protagonist has returned to his home town for this. Whilst there he revisits the place where he grew up, and the farm and duck pond owned by his neighbour, the Hemstocks. The rest of the play is then told in flashback, as we return to this place 40 years' earlier to see him as a young boy. His fascinating journey, his unlikely friendships, his fantastic otherwordly adventures - if indeed they all really happened - are brought strikingly and graphically to life. The play is both emotive and visceral and we are utterly involved in compelling storytelling. 

Perhaps the sound is too loud at times; I had to cover my ears in places where the volume rose above the acceptable, but this is my only quibble with an otherwise faultless production.

This is a truly ensemble company, the protagonists just get to speak that's all; whilst the malevolent presence of something from The Beyond is there all the time as the ensemble (dressed in black but deliberatley visible) as they move the scenery around with choreographed deliberance. Katy Rudd's direction is impeccable, and the whole cast and team of creatives should quite rightly be extremely proud of this production. I very rarely write this, in fact, I can't remember the last time I did, but this is a must-see!

The production will stay at Salford's Lowry until the 8 January before an extensive tour next year. 

Reviewer - Matthew Dougall
on - 20.12.22