Matilda; Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; The Twits; The Giraffe, The Pelly and Me…..the list of books written by Roald Dahl is extensive. I don’t know a single person who hasn’t read or had read to them a book by Mr Dahl, or at least seen a film adaptation of one of his books. To me, he is the master of sparking imagination within his readers, sending their minds to places far beyond what they possibly could imagine. As an adult, I still get that magical sense of joy when reading his works to my six-year-old.
Interactive Theatre International, the creative company behind Faulty Towers The Dining Experience, have come direct from the UK to bring a new show to this year’s Adelaide Fringe: Roald Dahl And The Imagination Seekers. The show’s director, Robert Wilson, and the cast, Nerine Skinner and Robbie Capaldi, sat down with me recently and we delved into the creative brain of Roald Dahl.
Having a six-year-old who loves Dahl’s books, I was very keen to have their insight into what has made his books stand the test of time, and become beloved by both kids and adults.
Nerine:
“For me it is certainly the imagination that it invokes. It doesn’t matter what age you are – whether you are little or the age I am. Every time I reread them and reimagine the stories, I think that Roald Dahl’s books can’t stretch your mind any further, but then they just keep doing it. It brings out that childish play that I just can’t find in other books.”
Robbie:
“Everything isn’t quite what you expect. There is always a twist on everything; there’s always that invitation to get you to look at things a new way. Particularly with children – they are always trying to find a new perspective on something.”
Robert:
“It’s also the themes. So often in Roald Dahl’s stories, the kids are empowered. These children are getting revenge against nasty adults, along with the shocking, gruesomeness of it all. “James and the Giant Peach” starts out with them going to the zoo and his parents getting eaten by a rhino. There is this crazy stuff that happens. There’s this idea of children getting revenge against adults and disempowering them. Every child can identify with that on some level. Dahl was just brilliant at writing that.”
Both Nerine and Robbie have very impressive performance resumes, but where did it all start for them? Was it a dream that became reality to have a career in the Arts industry?
Nerine:“
I came from a dance background. I loved dancing from an early age. I think that’s why I relate so well to books, because my imagination would run wild. If I was told that I wasn’t pointing my feet enough in dance, my imagination would run wild and I would create these big, scary characters out of the dance teachers in my mind. It was later on that I was watching friends in shows and I thought that it looked fun, so I started doing musical theatre. I now can’t imagine doing anything else.”
Robbie:
“I need to shout out to my parents who were not pushy stage parents at all! They would drive the huge distances to rehearsals for drama, dance, singing – all of that. They were very supportive and have always been so. My brother is a contemporary dancer, so there was a lot of jumping up from the dinner table and teaching each other moves that my poor parents had to deal with. Then when I was 12, they brought me a video camera and every weekend was a different movie. So, one weekend it might have been an Indiana Jones-inspired film. I would meet up with my friends and go off to the woods and make movies. So, I got into it that way. And here we are.”
Roald Dahl And The Imagination Seekers was developed in the UK originally as a school show. I was very interested to hear from the show’s director, Robert Wilson, what the process was in creating this work.
“We were originally commissioned by Puffin Books to create a new Roald Dahl show for schools. There was a sticking point – we couldn’t use any of the characters, plots, storylines or anything from Roald Dahl because the rights were tied up all over the place at that particular point of time. That has slightly changed now, but back then, that was what we had to work with with the Roald Dahl story company. So, we had to create a show that was engaging for everyone, whether you knew Roald Dahl or not, and was fun in its own merit. It was about tapping into this idea that the stories of Roald Dahl were under attack – what would the world be like if we didn’t have his stories and kids couldn’t read them? For me that would be a terrifying world, so we already had this terrifying idea of a world where his works would disappear. Many children from the age of 5 have already started to read his books, so we wanted to tap into that sense of them caring about the stories. It’s really about saving imagination, as a concept, and encouraging imagination. We treat the adults like children and the children like children. So, in the show, everyone has to take part. There’s a moment where everyone is called upon to stand up and do things that we might not do in our everyday life. It puts us all on the same level and the kids love it.”
Do you need to be an avid Roald Dahl fan to enjoy this show? If you are only part way through reading his books, will this show spoil any plot points?
Nerine:
“You don’t have to love Roald Dahl because it’s not about one particular element; it’s about the whole thing. The imagination is such a big part of it, so it’s about accessing that part of you. There’s a whole area of improvisation where we get ideas from the children and use some of the things they come up with. It’s amazing what they can create.”
Robbie:
“The show also doesn’t spoil any Roald Dahl books. Nothing is given away. So, if you are still reading his works, or part way through a book we will not ruin the end for you.”
In the current climate we are all living in at the moment, we all need a good laugh, to have our imaginations stretched and for our creative sparks to be ignited once again.
Robert:
“Roald Dahl said about writing children’s stories: “Above all, it must be funny.” And our show is funny. It is really important to have that element, and we aim to have a sense to laugh at humanity and our quirks. That is really encouraged through the show to create a relaxed atmosphere for everyone. There are no jokes that go over the children’s heads – everyone is on the same page.”
Robbie:
“At the same time, something I find with Roald Dahl’s work is that he doesn’t shy away from the important points, like the core of relationships and family. They are not breezed over and not made idealistic or too perfect. There is that struggle there that we all have and he respects children enough to put that content in his works and make it real. We have also tried to carry that through this show as well.”
Roald Dahl And The Imagination Seekers will be performed at The Flamingo at Gluttony between February 19th – March 20 (times vary each day). Tickets available through FringeTix or at https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/roald-dahl-and-the-imagination-seekers-af2022
Interview by Ben Stefanoff
