THE CROW, (THE PRINCESS), AND THE SCULLERY MAID at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe

★★

“it has the potential to be what it intended, a funny, charming short play for children who love fairy tales”

I’m a big fan of children’s theatre, and always try to see at least one kid’s show during any Fringe Festival. The publicity for The Crow, (The Princess), and The Scullery Maid sounded promising. This young, personable company from across the waters of both the Channel and the Atlantic are brilliant at rustling up an audience, and welcoming you warmly into the theatre. Once The Crow, (The Princess), and The Scullery Maid began however, it was clear that the script, and the performance skills, needed some work.

Let’s begin with the intended audience. Children’s theatre is an important, but often undervalued area. Children’s theatre requires both stamina and courage, because kids don’t hesitate to tell you how you’re doing, often loudly and unexpectedly, and right in the middle of the show. It demands that you respect both the work and your audience. The Crow, (The Princess), and The Scullery Maid wasn’t suitable for the youngest audiences because it was several drafts away from a finished script, and the plot was difficult to follow. The characters were equally confused, and that’s not just because the protagonist was a little girl (played by an adult) constantly on the verge of needing her naptime. Sadly, the show didn’t really establish the main plot and the characters until we were almost halfway through.

There was way too much exposition. But once we’d been properly introduced to the Scullery Maid and her ugly prince in disguise, things picked up considerably. It was possible to enjoy all the unlikely costume changes behind the curtain, and the frog kissing, and the book loving princesses on their own terms. And despite the randomness of story creating witches, and rescuing enchanters, there were moments of inspired dialogue that helped create a mood that any fantasy and satire loving adult, at any rate, could enjoy.

At sixty minutes, The Crow, (The Princess), and The Scullery Maid seemed long. But with work, it has the potential to be what it intended, a funny, charming short play for children who love fairy tales. With rewrites, Spin Cycle Theatre could be onto a winner.

THE CROW, (THE PRINCESS), AND THE SCULLERY MAID at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Reviewed on 21st August 2024

by Dominica Plummer

THE CROW

THE CROW

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