Olivia Jacobs’ is currently directing Room on the Brook which runs at the Lyric Theatre from 21st November. Olivia is co-founder and joint artistic director of Tall Stories.
Her directing credits for Tall Stories include The Gruffalo (UK - including West End, USA - including Broadway, Australia - including Sydney Opera House, Hong Kong & Singapore), The Gruffalo’s Child (UK - including West End, Australia - including Sydney Opera House, Hong Kong, Singapore & Dubai), Room on the Broom (UK – including West End, USA, Australia, Hong Kong & Singapore), Mr Benn (UK & Hong Kong, Singapore), How the Giraffe got its Neck (UK & Singapore), Monster Hits (UK & Singapore), Something Else (UK & Poland), Them With Tails and Them with Frozen Tails (UK & Poland), Mum and the Monster (UK), Rumpelstiltskin (UK), The Happy Prince and Other Stories (UK) and Snow White (UK & USA - including Broadway).
Olivia is currently working on the Lemony Snicket story The Latke Who Couldn’t Stop Screaming which opens at the Roundhouse this Christmas. Olivia was previously Artistic Director of Camden People’s Theatre where she directed The Monkeys Paw and The Necklace. Olivia talks to West End Frame about Room on the Broom, introducing children to theatre and how different audiences all around the world compare.
Are you looking forward to Room on the Broom opening at the Lyric Theatre later this month?
Yes! The show has been touring in the UK before it’s West End Christmas run, and we’re all really pleased to be heading into town to join in the festivities!
What is the show all about?
Room on the Broom tells the story of a witch and her cat as they fly over forests, rivers and mountains on their broomstick until a stormy wind blows away the witch’s hat, bow and wand. The lost items are retrieved by a dog, a bird and a frog, and in return each animal asks for a ride on the broom. They climb on, one after the next, until the broom is so heavy that it snaps in two! What will happen next as they tumble into a bog and come face to face with a greedy dragon?
Why should parents take their children to see Room on the Broom?
Because it’s a great story – told (I hope!) really well. The fabulous cast create a fabulous and exciting world of adventure with original songs, lots of inventiveness and a dash of humour thrown in for good measure. It’s a perfect Christmas treat that will sweep you off your feet!
Do you think it is important for children to be introduced to theatre at a young age?
My parents took me to see Shakespeare when I was 5. I’m not sure whether I understood it all – but I loved it nonetheless. There’s just something magical about having another world created for you live in front of your eyes. Theatre has a huge amount to compete with nowadays in terms of TV, film, internet and gaming. Children are growing up with a very literal presentation of stories on television and their attention spans are growing ever shorter. For me, theatre is the only genre that can bring a story to life and tell it directly to the specific audience who are watching on that specific day. In the theatre, we can weave a live, non-literal, magical story that isn’t removed from it’s audience by a flat screen. Families can go to the theatre together and feel part of an experience, be talked to directly – and nothing beats that. A great story, told well, live can encourage the next generation to be creative and use their imaginations and if we don’t introduce audiences to high quality, imaginative live performance from a young age – they may not ever really see theatre as something that is for them…
You have directed productions of Room on the Broom in many countries including USA, Australia, Hong Kong & Singapore. How do all the different audiences react?
It’s always interesting for us to take a show abroad to a new audience. Sometimes we have to alter specific references (for example, the Australians had no idea what ‘the bumps’ were and the American rhyming couplets in Room on the Broom are very different to the English versions – a plait translates to a braid for example).
Whilst there are, of course, some cultural differences between different audiences, to be honest, if you’re telling a great story and you do it well, there’s no reason that it can’t be well received all over the world.
You are co-founder and joint artistic director of Tall Stories. What else are you currently working on?
We’re crazy busy this Christmas, with The Gruffalo at Arts Depot in North Finchley, Room on the Broom in the West End, The Snail and the Whale in Exeter, The Snow Dragon in Edinburgh and Canturbury, The Gruffalo’s Child in Birmingham before it heads off on a UK tour next year and a new show The Latke Who Couldn’t Stop Screaming, opening at the Roundhouse in late November. And as if that didn’t keep us busy enough, Gruffalo heads of to America next January on tour and Mr Benn, The Gruffalo and Room on the Broom head off to Hong Kong, Singapore and Manilla as part of KidsFest. We’re also working alongside Australian producers CDP to create an Australian version of Room on the Broom, which flies into Sydney Opera House in April 2013. There’s not enough hours in the day!
What’s next for you?
There are so many plans afoot for Tall Stories at the moment. It’s a really busy time for us. We’re in the development stages of a new show, My Brother the Robot which is the third in our series of fact inspired shows and looks at the future of Robotics and Artificial Intelligence. We’re also hoping to tour into India and Malaysia next year (two new countries for us) as well as developing two new show ideas to see where they take us…
Finally, what would you like to say to everyone who has supported you throughout your career?
Thank you – for putting up with me….
Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue
Tickets: www.nimaxtheatres.com / www.roomonthebroomlive.co.uk
Visit www.tallstories.org.uk for more information.
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