Kidnapped
– the very word is enough fire excitement into every child blessed with
imagination, and fear into every parent cursed with over-imagination.
I’d loved Robert Louis Stevenson’s story as a child so couldn’t wait to take my own eldest, Kit, to see the stage version.
At just eight, I thought he was a little young for the text, but
reckoned the story of secrets, rebels, sword fights and high adventure
in Scotland would captivate him.
Five actors, an ingenious set, a touch of puppetry, drums, a guitar
and a violin bring the story to vivid life in this imaginative
production.
From the musical introduction introducing us to David Balfour, Kit
was enthralled, whispering to me ‘this is good’ before a word had been
spoken on stage.
The Greenock-based Sell A Door company does a fine job distilling the
epic tale with a wrap-around story allowing grown-up David (Jamie
Laird) to tell his story and assume different characters in a way that
made sense to younger audience members who perhaps aren’t used to actors
playing multiple roles.
Adults in the audience, and you definitely don’t need an accompanying
child to enjoy this show, smiled at the Lord Flashheart-style bravado
of Alan Breck (Simon Weir) while everyone warmed to bubbling, brave
Ransome (Lesley Cook).
Kit was captivated, as I’d hoped, and was literally on the edge of
his seat when David climbed the dark staircase at his wicked uncle’s
house, conveyed brilliantly to life with clever staging and a flash of
lightning.
I don’t know how much he took in about the Jacobite rebellion (though
it cleared a few things up for me) but we were happily seized and
carried away by this Kidnapped. (Twyford Advertiser)
HERALD SCOTLAND
Reviews: Theatre
Monday 20 January 2014
Kidnapped
Kidnapped
Beacon Arts Centre, Greenock
Neil Cooper
There's something irresistibly invigorating about Robert Louis
Stevenson's historical romp, first published in 1886. Dressing it up as a
Boys' Own style adventure was a master-stroke, and by putting young
David Balfour in the thick of a plot that involves political intrigue,
Jacobite rebellion and considerable macho swagger, Stevenson created
something akin to a Look and Learn of its day that has captured the
imaginations of would-be Davies ever since.
The ambitious Sell A Door company takes the book's spirit and runs with
it in Anna Fox's big, bold production of Ivan Wilkinson's new stage
version, which opened its extensive tour last week. There's already
something of a commotion onstage as the audience enter to the cast
belting out a song on fiddle, guitar and pounding percussion as if they
were a punk-folk ceilidh combo in full pelt. This is just a
curtain-raiser, however, to allow the older Davie to spin a yarn about
his colourful past to entertain his guests.
As Stewart McCheyne's young Davie sets off on what turns out to be the
ultimate rites of passage, the rest of the multi-tasking cast of five
unveil a world which, no matter how far Davie roams, is forever defined
by the giant map of Scotland that hangs in a frame at the back of the
stage. It's a fast-moving ride, with puppetry, music and stylised
movement played out on a set where walls become a ship in an instant.
Balfour and Simon Weir's Alan Breck, who struts the stage as cocksure as
a young Iain Cuthbertson, form a swashbuckling dynamic duo in a complex
tale of loyalties that go beyond politics to something deeper.
KIDNAPPED JournoJan 16 January 2014: Derring Do Deeds
A friend of mine is involved with a brand new production of Kidnapped at The Beacon Arts Centre in Greenock.
She asked if I'd like tickets for the opening night tonight so I took the kids.
What a treat. The cast of this production by Sell A Door Theatre Company did a great job of bringing Robert Louis Stevenson's tale of young Davie Balfour's adventures in an 18th century Scotland riven by division to action-packed life.
The five actors all worked hard, but Stewart McCheyne and young David Balfour and Simon Weir as Alan Breck made a great team and deserve a special mention.
My 12-year-old son really enjoyed it, which was a relief. He was sword mock-fighting me with a ruler when we got home, so it just goes to show that even in the age of iPhones and PlayStations, a bit of good old-fashioned swash-buckling still gets to a boy.
Not a great pic, but gives a flavour.
Bumped into fellow Blipper Pepysman and we had a blether about Three Way Selfies ;)
PS The production now takes off on a roller coaster journey around the UK for the next five months. Check the Sell A Door website for details
Kidnapped....A Family Adventure Tale
My daughter of 11 and I braved the awful wind and
rain to go to see 'Kidnapped' adapted for the stage by Ivan Wilkinson
from the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson.
We arrived some 20 minutes early and as we waited in the cafe
area I noticed some people were taking advantage of the restaurant for
a pre theatre meal, we may try that next time and the bar was busy
too. It also struck me that there were familys, groups of adults and
also quite a few people on their own.
A lovely surprise greeted us
as we entered the Ashcroft Theatre, the cast of five were already on
stage (set at this point in a cosy Scottish Borders home) playing
musical instuments and singing, we felt as though we were a fly on the
wall at a family gathering.
Kidnapped tells the tale of the young Davis Balfour, excellently
played by (Stewart McCheyne), narrated by the old David Balfour (Jamie
Laird) whose voice sounded like melting chocolate! and commanded you to
listen to the tale of his 'right of passage'.
The clever scenery
changed and adapted to take us to the high seas in stormy weather, to
Stirling with Towering castles and flat furtile land to the huge
mountains in Glencoe, to the wildness of Mull and the bustling centre of
Edinburgh, a scene of a sinking ship with all hands down was haunting
as the crew faught for their lives I nearly gasped for air myself as the
young David gasped for air! the use of puppets and mime were a stroke
of genious and the ensemble (Lesley Cook) and (Christopher Anderton)
took on many differant characters each and every one believable, and the
sword fights were amazing.
A history lesson too! We learnt with
David a 'whig', about past wars and the 'jacobites' one of whom Alan Beck
was played by the handsome 'Simon Weir'.
Congratulations to all cast and creatives on a cold windy night in Croydon you took us another place another time.
(http://www.croydonradio.com/schedule/bio.php?ID=e2c8f175-1dfb-3f75-7fe1-20d66da7a5d0)
Buckle Your Swash – It’s An Energetic Tour
The highly exuberant singing and dancing that seizes the audience
on arrival demonstrates the boundless enthusiasm which is present in
Sell a Door Theatre Company’s new touring adaptation of Robert Louis
Stephenson’s novel, Kidnapped, even if the introduction does go on a
little too long.
Set in 1750s Scotland, against the backdrop of the Jacobite
rebellion, the story follows the travels of a recently orphaned
teenager, David Balfour, who seeks out his wealthy uncle Ebenezer. Duped
into boarding a ship, young Davie is kidnapped and discovers he has
been sold into slavery by his bitter, miserly uncle. He befriends a
Jacobite, Alan Breck Stewart, who helps him escape, but then the new
companions find themselves shipwrecked, accused of murder and on the
run.
As emerging playwright Ivan Wilkinson’s first play, Kidnapped has all
the elements of Stevenson’s coming of age novel. Originally written as a
‘Boys Own’ adventure, Wilkinson skilfully manages to retain the purity
and historical framework of young Davie’s journey, as well as making it
accessible to a contemporary family audience and augmenting it with some
truly comedic moments.
Using physical storytelling, the action comes by way of recollection.
Jamie Laird is softly paternal as the omnipresent older Davie observing
his younger counterpart undergoing the trials of the journey, whilst
gently commentating throughout the action.
A tale of friendship, loyalty and politics, it is young Davie’s path to
adulthood that appeals to adults and children alike and this is
competently handled in both the script and the acting.
Stewart McCheyne’s passionate childish intensity as the young Davie
marries well with the strength and vigour of his manly companion, Alan
Breck Stewart (Simon Weir), as well as being compellingly matched with
the unpleasant volatility of Christopher Anderton’s evil uncle and the
innocence of Lesley Cook’s Ransome.
In the capable hands of director Anna Fox the whole play displays a
boundless energy. Add to that the ingenious devices such as two stools
to simulate the climbing of stairs, puppetry which brings malignity to
one scene and comedy to another, and scenery which cleverly oscillates
between home, ship and castle, and this really feels like a proficient
adaptation.
Supported by Maddy Mutch’s movement direction, the talented ensemble
of five actors skilfully make a credible descent into water during the
shipwreck scene, which is further enhanced by superb lighting and mood
music.
Despite the slightly protracted nature of the play’s musical
introduction, the refrains of ‘My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean’ and
‘Charlie Is My Darling’ are pleasantly infectious, as is the sustained
vitality of the performance, leaving audiences feeling captivated,
rather than captured, by this truly swashbuckling production of
Kidnapped.
Stamford Arts Centre – 6th February 2014. (Arts Going On Blog)
Kidnapped
- Brunton Theatre, Musselburgh (The Scotsman)
Kidnapped
B2 Belgrade Theatre, Coventry
****
ROBERT Louis Stevenson’s Kidnapped is such a well-known tale and yet in the hands of Sell a Door Theatre company it is brought alive with a really dynamic approach that involves a great and versatile set, music, dance and memorable acting.
A company of five actors provide all of the parts topped off with some oversized puppets that deserved to be developed more in the story-telling.
An older David Balfour (Jamie Laird) tells the story of his 17-year-old self (Stewart McCheyne), kidnapped and sold into slavery for a paltry sum and sent to the Carolinas by his wicked and jealous uncle (Christopher Anderton) to whom he had turned after his father’s death.
His adventures, as he raised himself up from captive slave to cabin boy, after the murder of his only friend on board ship Ransom (Lesley Cook), befriending outlaw Alan Breck (Simon Weir) on the way.
Historically the scene is complex and set against the bewildering Jacobite rebellions when the toast ‘to the King across the water’ could get you stamped out like an ant. The sense of danger and suspicion is well-handled and heightened by Psycho-style Hitchcockian violin!
The clever use of folksong, particularly ‘Charlie is my darling’ which provides a leitmotif throughout and also sets the scene historically. Alan Breck has a habit of rewarding his supporters by writing a quick folksong for them and this in itself shows that Bonny Prince Charlie had colossal support in the Highlands. The ongoing clan warfare which set family against family and particularly against the lowland Campbells added an extra dimension to both young Davey’s adventures and the drama.
Some of the younger members of the audience – and it was probably 25 per cent eight to 12 years old – might have found the Scottish accents a bit bewildering so maybe a course of BBC Scotland before you go could help.
I was sitting in the front row which is a difficult place to get a full view but even here the fight scenes were thoroughly believable. A word for the set – and it would be ‘wonderful’. In a small space the set, two great curving walls, took seconds to turn from a full-rigged ship to a castle to a bar and a homely fireside.
As a half-term treat, this production adapted by Ivan Wilkinson and directed by Anna Fox, offers a great lesson in history, a backdrop to the Scottish independence movement and an entertaining story that stands on its own merits. To 31-05-14
Jane Howard
*
Captivating
KIDNAPPED
Belgrade Theatre, Coventry, Thursday 29th May, 2014
Ivan Williamson’s new adaptation of the classic Robert Louis Stevenson story does not skimp on adventure and incident. The cast of just five work hard to populate the stage with a host of characters – For the most part this works very well; there are just a couple of times when additional hats and/or wigs would have come in handy.
Narrated by a grown-up David Balfour (Jamie Laird, commanding our attention) we see his younger self thrust into a world of treachery, betrayal and derring-do, through which he has to find his way and discover his own courage and strength of character. Director Anna Fox employs a range of theatrical techniques to support the actors in their storytelling. For example, there is a graceful sequence of physical theatre when Davie is shipwrecked and has to swim his way to the surface. Effective use is made of puppetry (thanks to consultant Alan Bird) in which objects are animated to constitute the people they represent, e.g. a ship’s wheel and coils of rope become a ferryman. It’s imaginative work and like the best narrative theatre, engages the imagination of the audience to picture what is not (or cannot) be staged.
Simon Weir is splendid as dandified Jacobite rebel Alan Breck who forges an alliance with our young hero that becomes a fast friendship. It’s not quite Long John Silver and Jim Hawkins but there is an understanding between them that is rather touching.
Strong support comes from Christopher Anderton as evil uncle Ebenezer and Lesley Cook in a range of roles including the appropriately named Ransome, who pays a terrible price. Jamie Laird nips in and out of characters and narration but it’s so well-paced you’re always clear who he is at any given moment.
As young Davie, Stewart McChene is an appealing, sympathetic and boyish protagonist. Even though we know he survives to tell the tale and grows up to be Jamie Laird, you become engrossed in his adventures and hope he comes to no harm. I was with him all the way.
Richard Evans’s set is clever and versatile but at times it seems like it could do with a bigger space in which to move.
The energy and commitment of the cast – including some rousing renditions of auld Scottish hits of centuries ago – keep us going through some of the wordier passages as the characters take sides in the fight for the hearts and minds of Scotland. Perhaps Cameron and Salmond should break into swordplay rather than holding a comparatively dull and bloodless referendum… * *
Generations of readers have grown up with Robert Louis Stevenson’s adventure stories.
Kidnapped, adapted by Sell A Door Theatre Company, is full of characters finding their place in the world - David and Ransome’s fatherless search for belonging; Alan and Cluny’s yearning for a time now passed and a victory lost; and Henderland’s appreciation of the ‘godless’ and ‘barbaric’ highlanders.
This adaptation cleverly combines Stevenson’s gripping plot with the excitement of a live performance. But what mainly makes this show so successful is its ability to captivate its audiences.
The small cast of five work tirelessly to perfect the story and there are strong confident performances all round.
Kidnapped plays at Coventry Belgrade Theatre’s B1 stage until Saturday.
Review by Amanda Chalmers. it’s still difficult to name a living writer with a narrative gift to match the
genius of Robert Louis Stevenson and this robust touring version of his great
1886 novel Kidnapped – created by the young Scottish-led London group Sell A
Door, and subtitled “A Family Adventure Tale” – offers a fine two hours of
ente
Adapted
by Ivan Wilkinson for a cast of five, Anna Fox’s production is often less than
perfect. The set wobbles a bit, the cast are sometimes allowed to obscure the
story by gabbling and roaring their lines, and Wilkinson’s script misses some
important tricks, failing to explain its introduction of an older version of
the hero, David Balfour, as narrator, and cutting the novel’s brilliant final
scene, in which David Balfour walks back into Edinburgh, carrying with him all
his newfound wisdom.
Yet
the sheer energy of the production, and the brilliance of the tale it tells,
carries it through, on a tide of Jacobite songs of the time. There’s a fine
performance from Simon Weir as the glamorous Jacobite Alan Breck Stewart, and a
beautifully pitched one from Stewart McCheyne as young David.
And
in this of all years, it’s a show that everyone in Scotland should see:
Stevenson’s love-song to a country so recently divided in war and rebellion,
but so rich in the capacity to heal those wounds, and to face the future with
both love and hope.
Seen
on 11.04.14
• On tour in England, and at His Majesty’s Theatre,
Aberdeen, 3-7 June
Kidnapped
– Greenwich Theatre
TRANSPORTING Robert Louis
Stevenson’s adventure novel Kidnapped to the stage may seem like Kidnapped
With a cast of only five actors,
director Anna Fox has brought Wilkinson’s script to life to share this riveting
story, set in 18th Century Scotland, to life for audiences of all ages.
Published
Friday 21 February 2014 at
16:41 by
Graham Gurrin
Simon Weir is enthusiastically
swashbuckling as Alan Breck. Lesley Cook, as well as taking on all
female parts, is particularly engaging as cabin-boy Ransome, as he tells
Davie about all the nasty things he has heard that happen to boys who
go ashore.
(The Stage)
The tale starts with the young David
Balfour as he is left at the mercy of his heartless uncle, Ebenezer Balfour,
when he finds himself an orphan at the age of 17. After attempting to kill his
nephew to prevent him from getting his hands on the inheritance, Ebenezer
arranges for David to be held prisoner onboard a ship that’s bound for the
Americas.
After a couple of weeks at sea, just
off the coast of Scotland, the ship collides with a small boat carrying Allen
Breck, the infamous Highland rebel and Jacobite. Although David is a Lowlander
and an ally to Breck’s enemies, they form a union to fight the ship’s crew
allowing them to return to their native land where they end up continuing their
adventure together across the unforgiving Scottish landscape.
Stewart McCheyne as David Balfour is
wide-eyed innocence from start to finish, which helps to amplify Simon Weir’s
maverick and cavalier Allen Breck.
Jamie Laird, as the adult David
Balfour, conveys the experience of age through his warharismatic manner
of storytelling. The female and male ensembles are created by Lesely Cook and
Christopher Anderton, who both bring a dynamic charge to each of the characters
they portray.
With such a strong and versatile
cast, it seemed a shame and somewhat unnecessary to include the occasional
puppet to depict minor characters.
Instead, the actors could have
easily donned a wig or cloak and pretended to be the few minor players.
However, this is such an insignificant point that it in no way detracts from
the overall production.
Kidnapped is the ideal show for the whole
family to enjoy.
Editor’s note: Kidnapped runs from April 7 to April 9, 2014,
and has free educational workshops for school groups attending a performance.
For more information on workshops and outreach work please call Naomi on 020
3355 8567.
Review by Shanna Schreuder
(IndieLondon)
