Review by Tina Kijak
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Fairytales do come true! …If you make them happen for yourself. Princess Smartypants tells the all too familiar tale of breaking free from your family’s expectations and how to navigate becoming an adult and your own person, by following your passions, learning to speak up for yourself and setting your own pace to move forward. Also, having a sassy, drum-playing dragon best friend along for the ride seems to help.
While the venue is West London’s gem, the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre, known for its familiar atmosphere and for putting on superb productions, I want to emphasize the glorious feeling I had stepping into a sparkly, pink ‘fairytale-land’ right upon entering the building – exactly how it should be for a children’s theatre production at 11am on a Saturday. So let me welcome you to the land of Tootalonia, where it’s Royal Day and the King and Queen invite us to be part of the annual festivities, to celebrate the kingdom and their family. Which is, however, missing an integral part as Princess Smartypants herself is off rehearsing with her animal friends’ rock band (who wouldn’t be?), rather than fulfilling her duties as obedient daughter and crowd-pleaser, however loud their cheering may be. Naturally, the concerned parents decide it’s time for her to grow up and get married and, inviting several princes from the surrounding lands for her to choose a husband.
The Princess, brilliantly portrayed by Alice Vilanculo, is unimpressed and certainly not smitten with her suitors from the likes of Prince Pickme of Muscletonia or the Prince of the Isle of Manure, and needs a plan. Together with her best friend, a dragon called Amazonia Sizzleflame (played by Alice Angliss in what I can only describe as a perfect ‘character brought to life’-performance. You know, as far as my expertise on Dragon-Behaviourism goes), they set up tasks for the princes, almost impossible to complete, in order to win the hand of Princess Smartypants. Only the full of himself, yet handsome, Prince Swashbuckle (Tom England) manages to beat the Princess at a ten-thousand-hour roller-disco marathon, rescue her from the prison-tower, and handle being attacked by a giant slug (one of the Princess’ cherished band members). Vilanculo and England delivered such an enthusiastic and energetic performance while competing and dancing on stage, that some of the kids and even grown-ups (me!) wanted to run up and join in.
With Swashbuckle now rightfully getting to marry Princess Smartypants, and because: (and I don’t even mind giving away the shows best flat-joke for the adults attending, as it will land over and over again) “his shirt is made of husband-material anyway” Amazonia comes up with one last trick to ruin the wedding. This only results in the Prince kidnapping the Queen, a truly regal and convincing Jesse Meadows, out of anger, sending Smartypants on a quest to rescue her mother from his home of Castle Creep. Successful in her endeavour to find them, with the prince declaring: “she really must be wearing the smartest of pants”, she finds the tables have turned on her, now having to master the tasks and pranks set out by Swashbuckle herself, for the possibility of riding off into her happily ever after, with her mom and a functioning family instead of a husband. Good for her, sounds great. But will she manage?
What I will give away though (yes, again), because it impressed me, is that the conversation between mother and daughter to potentially resolve any conflicts is beautifully simple so any child would understand what is being said. Yet, the complexity and importance of that relationship is not lost between the lines and set in the right tone for the grown-up audience to take in the actual words and have an impact with a brief “oh wow” moment.
Based on the Princess Smartypants books by Babette Cole, this stage adaptation at the Lyric Hammersmith is put on by The Wardrobe Ensemble. This Bristol-based group of theatre artists has been touring the country with this show since early 2024, with this London stop being their last. A wonderfully joy-bringing show, directed by Tom Brennan, it shows that nothing makes your day like a fairytale come true and someone, even a fictitious character, getting everything you believe they truly deserve. And even better if a talented ensemble, like on this stage, makes you clap, dance and sing along to all of it.
Together with James Newton, the shows composer, they did a great job adding the right amount of rhythm, voice and yes, necessary conversational ‘getting the children involved shouting’ to the production. In my opinion, this was perfectly balanced to keep the children’s attention long enough, yet not overexcite them and hype them up too much so they would lose interest during the 60 minute show. Which is, like any parent or anyone working in childcare will confirm, not an easy task.
Very often theatre productions for children can be a hit and miss scenario, because of all the unpredictability that comes with it. From the little ones’ behaviour, over them perhaps not being able to follow the plot, to boring the adults in the room to death. But none of that applies here, and Princess Smartypants hits all the marks it seems to aim for, and does it with an excitement that comes across from the actors from the beginning and the audience by the end of the performance. Having been perfectly transferred via a stage that looks like every child’s dream-bedroom come to life, sometimes, it’s best to just let things speak for themselves. So, to quote the shows very last words: “what a beautiful day!”. And while I don’t need, but very much want, to have the proper last words in whatever I write, let me quickly add: “with a beautiful show!”
Princess Smartypants played at the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre from May 28th until June 1st
For more information and to see the venue’s upcoming productions visit https://lyric.co.uk/shows/princess-smartypants/
Photos by Paul Blakemore
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😃 fantastic review from Tina Kijak, enjoyed reading it immensely. Hopefully it'll have another run at the Lyric.
An enthusiastic, brilliant review. Hope it returns to the Lyric so I can take my granddaughters for them see options to Prince of Manure
What a great review! 👏
I’d really like to see the show now, shame it already stopped.
Awesome review! Sounds like another great production at the Lyric.