Archive Unboxed: children’s adaptations

This winter, we are staging a re-imagining of Noel Streatfeild’s much-loved children’s book, Ballet Shoes, by Kendall Feaver and directed by Katy Rudd.

This production continues our tradition in programming children’s adaptations, especially over the festive period, starting in 1976. In fact, Sir Peter Hall stated in 1973 that it was the National Theatre’s duty to provide a repertory of children’s plays.

One of our earliest children’s adaptations at the National Theatre was The Wind in the Willows, adapted by Alan Bennett from the original story by Kenneth Graham. First staged in the Olivier in 1990, the Financial Times noted that the ‘details of costumes and sets affords delight upon delight’.

The Wind in the Willows was a hit with most tickets snapped up as booking opened and it was revived three times.

To coincide with the production, we also ran themed children’s events, including Weasel Workshops on animal movement.

In subsequent years, Nicholas Hytner looked towards more current stories that would appeal to young people. Then Literary Manager, Jack Bradley, encouraged him to read Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy, resulting in the staging of an adaptation by Nicholas Wright in 2003.

For the daemons – the animal representation of characters’ ‘inner feelings’ – puppets were designed by Michael Curry, who had previously co-designed puppets for the stage adaptation of The Lion King.

Constructed from metal and mesh, the puppets range from small geckos to the large head and paws for Iorek, the polar bear-like King of Svalbard, complete with detachable armour and battle scars.

A selection of the puppets from this show are now held by the Archive.

Puppetry was again used for Bryony Lavery’s 2014 adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island, directed by Polly Findlay. In fact, many of the press reviews for the production mention the mechanised parrot belonging to Long John Silver.

The highlight of the show was the use of the Olivier drum revolve to reveal the spectacular sets designed by Lizzie Clachan, including the emergence of the ship Hispaniola.

In an interview with the writer Bryony Lavery in The Stage, she noted that an adaptation should strike a balance between ‘something that is both faithful to the book and yet which works in the new medium and which sends everybody back to the book’.

As Ballet Shoes delights audiences until February, it seems Streatfeild’s story will find new and returning fans this New Year.

If you want to find out more about children’s adaptations at the National Theatre, take a look at the Archive’s Google Arts & Culture online exhibition.  

About the author: Rebekah Hayes is the Archivist at the National Theatre Archive.