Richmond Theatre – until 23 March 2019
Reviewed by Prachya van de Gevel
5*****
Family Fun for all ages!
My friend text me saying he thinks Tom Gates may be designed for children, as I had no idea about the show before I arrived, and whilst there were indeed many children, there was also many adults of all ages.
I tell you something I had such a good time, characters from Liz Pichon’s imagination and inspired in small part I am sure by her own children. Tom is known for his talented gifts as an artist and when given the opportunity to draw on a council doodle wall, and gets caught by a lady drawing on the wrong wall, you can only imagine the chaos that ensues, especially with a mysterious lady (Ebony Wong) that seems to pop up at every turn causes many hilarious situations that even as an adult we can all relate to.
Tom Gates (Matthew Chase) along with his friends, Norman (Justin Davies), Amy (Amy Hargreaves) and best friend Derek (Matthew Gordon) are navigating through the haphazard of school life being thwarted by school tell tale Marcus (Ashley Cousins) whilst being in an awesome Rock Band “Dog Zombies”. When not in school Tom has a crazy home life of his mildly eccentric parents and grandparents. Mum and Dad (Alice Redmond and Daniel Harkin) are great as the parents they bring in just as many laughs as the main cast. Tom’s sister Delia, also played by Amy Hargreaves, is a typical sullen teenager all in black with a monstrous attitude, but it’s the special effects like the thunder that follows her around under her rain cloud that really steal the show.
The set is wonderful, complex transitions from scene to scene that are overlaid with projections and animations, and like magic set pieces appear from no where. This alongside the music and soundtrack made for a wonderful evening of entertainment.
One of the best things about the show was the pure imagination and innocence of the story. A world where children are still drawing, playing music and actively socialising with their friends. There are no mobile phones, no games consoles just pure wholesome fun. For the shows targeted audience I am sure it will be a sure fire hit as it is entertaining on all levels that the parents will appreciate. The humour and the all new story line from a beloved character of over 15 books brought to life by a great cast and creates a fun night out for everyone.