THE BOY WITH WINGS

Polka Theatre

★★★

“promises to enchant a new generation with the art of live theatre”

The Boy with Wings, a new co-production between Polka Theatre and Birmingham Rep, and based on the book by Sir Lenny Henry, is a visually stunning show perfectly packaged for younger viewers with lots of heart and some important life lessons.

Adapted for the stage by Arvind Ethan David, we follow Tunde (Adiel Boboye), a twelve-year-old boy who lives with his mum, as he pursues his dream of reuniting with his absent father. Assisted by his newly acquired best friends Kylie (Millie Elkins-Green) and Dev (Samir Mahat), Tunde soon receives a shock when he magically sprouts wings and begins to fly. Thus begins a series of events that throw the gang straight into a war that is raging between two alien races: the talking cats and the bird folk. There’s twists and turns enough to keep the children in the audience on the edge of their seats, and the show becomes a cheerful example of the futile nature of war.

This is, at its heart, a story about finding peace and commonality in starkly opposing characters; as leader of the cats, Juba (Jessica Murrain), reminds us: ‘The reasons for war can often seem many, but when it comes down to it there aren’t any’. The message a strong one, as is that of the importance of unconditional support in friendships. One only wishes someone would’ve also reassured Tunde that it’s really okay for a young boy to cry over his estranged father.

The cast overall bring dynamic performances to this quirky children’s tale. Mahat brings an infectious vigour to his role which is neatly contrasted with Elkins-Green’s suitably wiser-than-her-years, sarcastic tones. Boboye as Tunde is sweet and hopeful, while Mia Jerome as his mother, Ruth, brings delightful life to her moments of heavy exposition.

The costumes (Laura McEwen) and lighting design (Gillian Tan) are bright, beautiful and perfect for little eyes; the grand, sweeping wings of Tunde and his father are a particularly world-transporting highlight. The set design (also McEwen) is truly outstanding; it balances gorgeous imagery with diverse practical use and allows us to witness some perky parkour, dramatic character reveals, and even includes a plethora of wheelchair accessible ramps which Elkins-Green makes good use of, spinning around the stage with utter confidence.

While not branded as a musical per se, this production is let down by its songs (Arvind Ethan David and Khalil Madovi). Though the rap elements are electric and engaging – Stephan Boyce as Aaven especially brings a certain energy and humour that is hard to escape – the songs feel superfluous. The show fails to justify the need for the sung content and these moments never pack any sort of punch; whether this is from poor writing, the actors looking rather uncomfortable to be singing or a mix of both, it’s hard to tell. That said, the joyous audience participation in the finale song is enough to forgive its irrelevance to the show’s structure, and indeed the children in the audience are far more enjoying singing along than debating the merits of prose versus song.

Directed by Daniel Bailey, this show is a strong offering to the landscape of children’s theatre. It does an admirable job of squeezing the excitement of the original story onto a relatively small stage, but one can’t help but feel like the sparkle of the book doesn’t quite shine all the way through. Despite a couple of small timing and diction issues, The Boy with Wings is a joyful experience to watch and an easily accessible show for any child. Blending strong performances with heartfelt content, this show promises to enchant a new generation with the art of live theatre.

THE BOY WITH WINGS

Polka Theatre

Reviewed on 28th June 2025

by Kathryn McQueen

Photography by Jake Bush and Adela Ursachi

June’s five star shows:

FIDDLER ON THE ROOF | ★★★★★ | BARBICAN | June 2025

LAGUNA BAY | ★★★★★ | CHISWICK HOUSE & GARDENS | June 2025

INSIDE GIOVANNI’S ROOM | ★★★★★ | SADLER’S WELLS EAST | June 2025

KIERAN HODGSON: VOICE OF AMERICA | ★★★★★ | SOHO THEATRE | June 2025

THE BOY WITH WINGS

★★★★

“We are fascinated by what Lucas has to say, but it’s the music that truly speaks for itself”

As we sit round an upright piano, we are given an in-depth analysis of the aftereffects of striking a piano key. How the slim slab of ivory trips a lever which brings a soft felt-lined hammer onto a metal string, which, in turn, causes the air to vibrate eventually spreading across the room and filling each of us with the same vibration that we call music. We are inextricably linked and reeled in by the unifying hook that transfixes us. Anoushka Lucas is the one telling us all this, although she doesn’t need this allegory to catch, and to hold, our attention. She is a natural-born raconteur, with a charismatic flair to match.

“Elephant” is written, composed and performed by Lucas. We suspect that there are veiled, autobiographical elements hidden within her monologue, but she is telling us Lylah’s story who, at the age of seven, watched a group of workmen rip out the windows of her family’s council flat to lower a piano into their living room. From then on it dominated her small living space, her life and her love affair with music began. This love of music drives the narrative, but it is fuelled by various pivotal moments in Lylah’s life that shape her identity as a mixed-race, working-class girl who dares to be different. Who dares to cross the class divide. Who dares to defy the white, misogynistic expectations that music executives have for her career. Who dares to challenge the innate and unearned privilege of colonialist descendants.

Lylah is continually drawn back to the piano. Sitting centre stage, slowly revolving as Lucas plays and sings. Entirely acoustic and without the aid of technological trickery her singing is intimate, rich and mellow. The piano is an extension of Lylah but when a song ends, we are back in the narrative and the piano becomes the elephant in the room. Lylah’s piano has ivory keys, and she has a hard time reconciling the beauty of her instrument with the cruelty that went into its construction. The brutal tearing out of the tusks from the elephant’s face, the use of enslaved people to transport the tusk. Lucas is able to revisit this theme with ease without hammering the point. Jess Edwards’ supple direction is sensitive to the crescendos and diminuendos of Lylah’s story; each element played as part of a rhapsody. A sharp piano note heralds a twist in the tale while Laura Howards lighting shifts through shades to illuminate the various phases of her life. We learn a lot about Lylah’s childhood – Lucas is expert at seeing the world through a child’s eyes, and then retaining that unfiltered honesty, bringing it with her into adulthood. Love comes in the form of Leo, a session drummer, who invites her to his family cottage. The ’cottage’ is, in fact, a nine-bedroom country manor, furnished with the trappings of the Empire. Including a mahogany grand piano. Lylah cannot prevent herself addressing the ‘elephant in the room’ – literal and symbolic – and the anger that pours out is heartfelt and human without being sanctimonious or political.

We then return to the music. Then back to another episode of life. But always back to the music. Sometimes the musical interludes are brief, and the show could perhaps do with more performance and less talk. The show is bookended by the observation that the black and the white keys on a piano are disproportionately balanced. It is an interesting analogy at the beginning, but we don’t need it repeated. Lucas has shown us that music is blind to this distinction. We are fascinated by what Lucas has to say, but it’s the music that truly speaks for itself.

THE BOY WITH WINGS

Polka Theatre

★★★

“promises to enchant a new generation with the art of live theatre”

THE BOY WITH WINGS

Polka Theatre

Reviewed on 28th June 2025

by Kathryn McQueen

Photography by Jake Bush and Adela Ursachi

June’s five star shows:

THE BOY WITH WINGS

THE BOY WITH WINGS

THE BOY WITH WINGS

ELEPHANT

Menier Chocolate Factory

★★★★

“We are fascinated by what Lucas has to say, but it’s the music that truly speaks for itself”

ELEPHANT

Menier Chocolate Factory

Reviewed on 30th May 2025

by Jonathan Evans

Photography by Manuel Harlan

Previously reviewed at this venue:

ELEPHANT

ELEPHANT

ELEPHANT

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