CULTURE THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE @ LYCEUM THEATRE

WORDS: JOSEPH FOOD // PHOTO: BRINKHOFF-MOEGENBURG

Neil Gaiman’s 2013 novel ‘The Ocean at the End of the Lane’ came alive in stunning and often nightmarish style at Sheffield Lyceum last month.

Adapted by Joel Norwood and directed by Katy Rudd, this National Theatre production transports the audience into an enchanting –albeit frequently unsettling – world of magic, fantasy and bloodcurdling monsters in a hugely impressive showcase of stagecraft.

The story begins in straightforward enough fashion: a man returns to his childhood home in Sussex, where he meets the eccentric grandmother of an old friend and in doing so unlocks his recollections as a 12-year-old boy (played by Keir Ogilvy).

While navigating the awkwardness of familial grief following the death of his mother, most notably the tricky relationship with his at-a-loss father and relentlessly taunting sister, the shy and bookish ‘Boy’ is taken under the wing of mysterious Lettie Hempstock (Milli Hikasa) and her strange family who live on a farm at the end of the lane.

As if the worldly trials and tribulations of early teenage life were not enough for Boy to contend with, his adventures with Lettie lead him into confrontations with dark, interdimensional creatures such as the Flea – a shapeshifting monster who manages to infiltrate the protagonist’s household as new lodger Ursula Monkton (Charlie Brooks), charming then manipulating his father and sister in the process.

The whole thing is a visual feast – from intense, flashing battle scenes soundtracked by Jherke Bischoff’s crunching score to clever use of on-stage illusion and choreography depicting entrapment by evil and, in one particularly immersive scene, the crossing of boundaries into underwater worlds containing the answers to all of life’s mysteries. As you can imagine, it’s no mean feat to replicate such things on a stage, but it’s all brought together in innovative and mesmeric style.

Such a dynamic show requires a cast on top of their game, and they certainly were. Daniel Cornish plays Boy as an endearing bundle of fevered excitement, downright bewilderment and teenage angst. Millie Hikasa serves up plenty of welcome humorous respite and spades of likeability in her performance as Lettie, while Charlie Brooks is suitably despicable in her depiction of Ursula/the Flea. Away from the frantic action, a good chunk of the emotional pull comes from Trever Fox’s sympathetic portrayal of a weary father juggling financial problems, parenting worries and keeping his own demons from the past at bay.

We left the theatre having been treated to a stunning spectacle exploring the power of childhood memories, the rites of passage we undertake while growing up and the horrors faced – both real and imagined – on our journey to reach adulthood.

5/5

For a full guide to June events at Sheffield Theatres, head to www. sheffieldtheatres.co.uk.