Streaming until 11 April – book via shoreditchtownhall.com
4****
Reviewed by Claire Roderick
A fun and frantic audio adventure, Curse of the Crackles! is a sure-fire family hit. Deliciously daft and striking the right balance between bum and fart jokes for the kids and dad jokes for the adults.
Accompanied by an activity pack with a DIY eye mask for children to make, the show can be listened to on multiple devices in one household, although watching your children opening doors, participating in a car chase and dancing around may be entertaining enough for some adults.
Ben and Max Ringham’s sound design immerses the listener in a crazy world where the mischievous Crackles have muddled up all the sounds and Riff the most excellentist puppy needs our help on her quest to fix things. It’s like a CBBC version of Blindness, with pirates, gangsters and a jail break thrown into the mix. Writer Bea Roberts and director Ed Stambollouian have pitched the story at 7 to 11-year-olds, although the absurdity of the mild jeopardy ensures the show is not too disturbing for younger children as well.
Norah Lopez Holden and Sam Swann voice all the ridiculous characters ranging from the Queen to a swarm of bees with great energy and make it easy for the listener to embrace the madness and join in when Riff asks for help opening jars and doors – she doesn’t have thumbs!
The running time of 45 minutes flies by as Riff hurtles from one outlandish situation to another searching for a way to get her squeaky bone to make the right sound again and ends with a party that will have the grumpiest dad dancing along.