Little Red Bus

The Boy Who Cried Wolf The Little Company - A division of the Singapore Repertory Theatre

Absolutely entertaining and highly inspiring, 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf' is yet another production from The Little Company. The Little Red Bus recently had the privilege of watching and reviewing this wonderful play, thanks to the generosity of the Singapore Repertory Theatre.

Founded back in 2001 by SRT, The Little Company is the birth child of their vision of producing theatre of the same quality for adults, for young children between 2 to 12 years of age. Their productions are written, designed, and performed especially for the young ones by professional adult actors.

Production and Play
Not much needs be said about the storyline of the play, a fable attributed to Aesop. One of the world's most beautiful inspirational stories for young children, it teaches children (and adults) the importance of always telling the truth, and that lying brings forth no good.

Perhaps what I liked best about this play, is how they acknowledged children's need for attention and love from their parents. We see the drastic measures they'd take to seek attention, and how as parents, we often view them as a negative behaviour; and easily fail to recognize the motive behind the behaviour.

Towards the end of the play, Little Petey's father realizes the reason behind his son's mishchief and decides to put time aside for his growing son. The play not only teaches children the ill effects of lying, but also gently awakens parents to spend more quality time with their precious young ones.

The Reception
I have been to children's plays back while being a pre-school educator, and since we usually arrive in large groups, we'd usually bypass the nitty gritty details of collection of tickets, checking of seat numbers, and what-comes-with-it. I wasn't quite sure what to expect attending one without my pack (students).

Despite being early, and the tiny crowd that had gathered outside the box office, I was pleasantly surprised at the counter staff who immediately stepped out of her booth to attend to me, as soon as I wandered in (looking lost, I'm sure).

She then proceeded to hand me my ticket and pointed out my seat number. The rest of the staff present also appeared to be genuinely friendly and excited about the play, which is an essential factor when working with young children. The children who began streaming in with their parents later on also seem to be infected by the festive and cheerful atmosphere provided by the staff.

They spent the waiting time walking around and interacting with the children and their parents, handing out pamphlets, with a simple craft kit (sheep's ears) attached to it. Children all over were ecstatically putting on their "ears" with the assistance of their parents.

The doors opened promptly at 1:45pm, 15 minutes prior to the play. We were once again greeted by the friendly faces of their staff who provided children with buckets to elevate their seats, and ushered parents to their seats.

The seats were quickly filled, and it wasn't long before we realized it was a full house!

The Set

I was thrilled we managed to get a snapshot of the set before the play began. This picture does no justice to the excellent props and set layout. Realistic stage props were used as tools to introduce children to the play. These realistic props helped the younger children further understand the roles played, and what the play scenario was all about.

That said, there weren't too many props to overwhelm the child audience either. Instead, the props aptly complimented the actors while the were on stage; all the while leaving the attention solely onto the actors. It gave the play depth, and heightened its psychological quality. The actors used the props so naturally, that they enhanced our understanding and enjoyment of the show.

The Script
Written by Jean Tay who holds a degree in creative writing, and multiple prestigious awards, the script was flawless, easy to grasp for the young ones, and comical in just the right amount.

The actors played a huge role in enhancing the script too. They frequently edited their script to suit the mood and suggestions of their child audience, who were all-too-gladly screaming out suggestions ever so often. The script was evidently written to blend in with the local crowd (evident when the wolf attempts cooking mutton murtabak with the sheep).

Despite lasting almost 50 minutes (which in usual cases exceeds the attention span of toddlers), the script (and actors) managed to capture the attention of their young audience till the end. The children were highly engaged in their recipocal relationship with the play, its props, and its actors.

The Actors
Fabulous. Entertaining. Inspiring. The actors managed to convey the play's ambitious aspirations to its audience, both young and old. Keeping in mind that we attended their last show for the week, their deliverance was still fresh, and entertaining.

They appeared to be having a blast, all the while:

Never forgetting their script
Not a blub (okay Little Petey's Dad had one towards the end, but he managed to get a laugh out of everyone by gracefully acknowledging it)
Edifying as they went along (Little Petey got inspired by the child audience and added a dragon in his "fake attempts of crying wolf")
Singing and dancing, and
Interacting with the audience (Little Petey did countless rounds around the audience in the attempt of "counting his sheeps", Wolf was constantly engaged with the audience through his script)

They were expressive with their movements, their speech and songs were loud and clear, and (again!) they managed to captivate their young audience till the very end, which still amazes me!

Lights and Sound
I'm no expert in the lights department, but I would think that the lights and sound played an important role in intensifying the play.

Children and adults were treated to up-beat (but non-irritative) music while we waited for the play to begin and the not-so-early-ones to settle down. The music also served as a buffer for the children to absorb in the setting and new environment, prior to the commencement of the play.

Moments where Little Petey was describing the Dragon (an impromptu inspiration from his child audience) and the Giant, the lights and sound added to the mystery.

Sound Designer, Darren Ng's work has been compared to Erik Satie, Ryuichi Sakamoto, and Martin Denny by international music reviewers from UK and Hong Kong. Thus, it goes without saying the sounds in this play was nothing short of excellent.

Crowd's favourite probably was "Who's Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf." This cheerful tune caught the public fancy in the darkest days of the Great Depression. It was first heard in Three Little Pigs, a Silly Symphony released May 27, 1933. The original song composed by Frank Churchill for the cartoon, mirrored the people's resolve against the "big bad wolf" of The Great Depression; the song actually became something of an anthem of the Great Depression.

To Summarize
The Boy Who Cried Wolf, probably one of the best eye-opener I've experienced in quite a while with its underlying morals, is highly recommended to all parents and schools too.

Like to catch a preview of the play?
You will be delighted by how it is brought to life by an exciting script and a professional cast of actors.