Lily Through the Dark

Lily through the Dark
If there was a way to ensnare moments of Hollywood film in a stage play, Lily through the Dark has shown the best attempt I have seen yet. Normally going to the theatre, I try to avoid play involving puppetry and dark tales of death and despair however, I felt for the first time that puppetry had an effect on me as an audience member. Lily through the Dark was a humble play with a cast of four and two puppets, it focused on the puppet of Lily ,which was beautifully made, and allowed the audience to be so mesmerised by the puppetry that it was almost as if Lily was real The play was charming and humorous but with several poignant moments in which I felt myself choked up. The play follows a small girl, who after the death of her father commits suicide, she promises to find her father and so begins her search for him however, on hearing that her father did not go all the way to heaven she leaps from the safety of the boat taking her to heaven and beings to look. The play used puppetry to explore Lily’s travels through the underworld yet used the four actors to symbolise other characters and add a twisted dimension to the interaction scenes between human and puppet. One stand out scene for me was when Lily came across two hanging gentlemen and when she asks for directions hilarity ensues, however there were darker scenes to the play, the truth behind the concept of death is explored deeply, which is significant as for quite a majority of the play one could suggests the puppetry is good enough to be a children’s show. After the trials and tribulations of searching for her father the story leaves us with a very important and relevant message. Lily is offered an ultimatum, she is told that even though she has come this far it is dangerous for her to die so young and that she must choose to be given back her life and never see her father again or search the dead lands and hope she may find him. The vivacity and intensity of the play caught me off guard and sent me on an emotional rollercoaster from humour to tragedy all in a short period of time. Overall, a fantastic play. Thom's Star Rating *****