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'Kiki's Delivery Service' returns recast for August 2017; this review is from its Christmas 2016 run
Eiko Kadono's story of a young witch is best known for the Studio Ghibli anime adaptation, where Kiki's adventures are painted in gorgeous nostalgic pastels. There are more pastels and fewer adventures in this stage adaptation by Jessica Sian, but it's artfully done all the same.
Kiki is a 13-year-old witch who, as tradition dictates, must leave her family and find a new life for herself. So she starts a broom-based delivery service above a tiny bakery in a strange, inhospitable town. But the tiny Kiki fan club in the audience already know that, as their black dresses, red hair bows or micro-brooms show. Alice Hewkin does their heroine proud, in a wide-eyed, determined performance that grows from spoilt kid to beloved town witch/delivery girl.
Getting a witch to really fly in a fringe venue must have been one hell of a headache and movement director Robin Guiver just about manages it, relying on a quirky mix of wires, puppetry, and projection to help Kiki soar. It's all helped by Simon Bejer's brilliant design, which stacks the space full of huge boxes that open up to reveal stacks of parcels, or picture-perfect spreads of cakes.
Miyazaki's film amped up the drama with a tense clocktower rescue, but this production follows the novel down a gentler path. It's a story of finding your own way, set in a modern world where witches are less than welcome and their powers are faint next to bright electric lights. When it comes to emotion, Kiki's adventure definitely delivers.