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Review: Lark Rise To Candleford (Watermill Theatre)

Review by Hywel Farrow-Wilton


⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️


The latest heartwarming, folksy tale to grace the Watermill Theatre’s stage is Lark Rise To Candleford, offering a joyful, calming evening of entertainment for anyone seeking a gentle, low-stakes story to ease them towards Spring. The show is filled with calming, folk-inspired music and lovable characters, all set within the Watermill’s intimate, rustic theatre, which makes it easy to escape into the characters’ rural life. The overall effect makes the audience feel as if they’re on a rural mindfulness retreat, but it seemed like everyone attending was up for it.



This is a joint production between the Watermill Theatre and Theatre by the Lake in association with Hammerpuzzle Theatre Company, who specialise in taking historical and literary stimuli and turning them into ensemble-driven theatre that aims to keep a story's heart as its driving force. First performed in 2022 at the Cheltenham Everyman, Lark Rise To Candleford is adapted from the famous novel of the same name by Flora Thompson. It follows the story of Laura in rural Oxfordshire at the end of the 19th century, narrated retrospectively by herself and the other actors, tracing her life from being a young girl living on a farm through to her adult working life and the relationships she forms with her family and the people of the town.


Tamsin Kennard serves as the writer, composer and musical director of the show, as well as being the Co-Artistic Director of Hammerpuzzle Theatre Company. Kennard’s script is playful, gentle and packed-full of charm, which makes for a very easy watch. It captures the essence of rural life well, showing Laura’s dissatisfaction with the grinding monotony of farm life and the demands and expectations placed upon young women of the time. Kennard finds an interesting connection between the historical setting and the similar demands and expectations placed upon people today. It is s a somewhat comforting reminder that in today’s world, where the pace of change feels out of control, change has always been a constant and that we as a society would probably do better to try and find beauty in the impermanence.



This is what I mean by the play feeling like an exercise in mindfulness, especially in the context of someone reflecting on their life as Laura does in the show. It is this frame of reflection that gives the show a steady, nostalgic pace, and whilst this does make for a relaxing watch, the second half of Act Two does end up dragging a bit. However, the emotional climax of the show provides just enough of a change of pace to push it over the finish line before the momentum of the show peters out entirely. 


The direction of the show is taken on by Bryn Holding, marrying the real world with the world of the show very well with the use of narration and rustic aesthetic, lending itself perfectly to the intimate, barn-like auditorium. The use of folk music is also extremely effective, not being too overbearing and interrupting the flow of the story, but working to highlight specific dramatic moments that aid in the pace and storytelling. However, the pacing of the second half of Act Two needed to be worked on to make sure there is enough dramatic tension to see the show through to a satisfying conclusion.



Set and Costume design by Anna Kelsey is particularly outstanding. With period shows, it’s always important that the world is crafted to accurately suit the time, and Kelsey did a fantastic job dressing everyone in a lovely mix of rural cotton dresses and shirts with more formal cloaks and top hats for the wealthier characters. Kelsey interestingly used more muted colours that worked well with the large amount of timber in the set, and it felt like the characters really lived and worked in the clothes they were wearing. Kelsey also made great use of the limited space of the theatre by employing a lot of multi-use set pieces dressed to suit the timber environment. The post office in Act Two is especially well-dressed with lots of interesting historical appliances, but what was the highlight for me was her inclusion of flowers and maize placed around the edges of the stage and on movable trucks that really immersed you in the farming world of the village. 


As is usually the case with Watermill shows, Lark Rise to Candleford employs a cast of six multi-talented actor-musos to bring to life a plethora of characters, whilst also accompanying on their instruments. Jessica Temple leads the cast as Laura, and she finds a lovely sense of hope in the character that endears the audience from the very start. She moves easily from playing the wistful energy of the child version of Laura to the wiser, more careful adult she becomes. Alex Wilson plays Laura’s brother Edmund, among a handful of other characters. His characterisation of Edmund oozes with cheerful, innocent ‘little brother energy’, but even within his other ‘smaller parts’ he still manages to find moments of great emotional depth. 



Rosalind Ford as Dorcas Lane is a wonderful comic presence, with her frenetic, ‘peculiar’ energy providing great moments of levity, establishing her character as a firm favourite among the audience. Christopher Glover as Father/Uncle John has a great commanding authority, but also gets to show a ‘gentle giant’ side in several of his characters, showing Laura the beauty that exists in nature if you look for it. Zrey Sholapurkar plays Godfrey Parish, among others, and it’s extremely charming as the young journalist. His performance was so endearing that some members of the audience were audibly sighing when Godfrey left Candleford. Finally, Rosalind Steele plays ‘Mother’, but left the best impression in her cameo role as Mrs Herring. Steele brought a very Lady Bracknell-esque energy to the performance and found similar comic beats in the shrillness of her voice that provided a few of the more ‘laugh-out-loud’ moments of the show. 


Overall, Lark Rise to Candleford is a very enjoyable evening for the casual theatre-goer who enjoys a light-hearted period drama. Its beautiful aesthetic, memorable performances and heartwarming script make it a relaxing evening that will make you forget about the woes of Winter for a few hours and remind you of the power of embracing nature, the inevitable life cycle of love and loss, and the power and comfort in the fact that ‘Nothing dies that was ever loved’.


Lark Rise To Candleford plays at the Watermill Theatre until 14th March. Tickets from https://www.watermill.org.uk/events/lark-rise

It then plays at Theatre by The Lake from 26th March - 18th April.


Photos by Pamela Raith

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