Arts & Culture

What: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Where: Young People’s Theatre, Ada Slaight Stage, 165 Front St. E.
When: Now, until Mon., Dec. 30
Highlight: Technicolour costumes and illusion-filled set design
Rating: NN (out of 5)
Why you should go: Nostalgic story in a Canadian premiere

WHO WOULDN’T WANT to live in a world made of chocolate? A kid’s dream come true: you could stuff your mouth full of cotton candy and live in a world of Pure Imagination.

Well, be careful because, as dentists caution, too many sweets cause a toothache. And much like the Wonka experience in Glasgow, I’m afraid that, in this production, that may be the case.

In the Canadian premiere (of the 75-minute version of the musical), Young People’s Theatre in Toronto presents Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Though it’s based more closely on the book rather than the movie, there are still familiar musical favourites by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley, such as Pure Imagination. Though there are many things to love about this production, it has a couple of directorial choices and tech mishaps that detract from the magic of Dahl’s chocolate world.

This classic cautionary tale follows Charlie Bucket, a boy who comes from a family where money is tight but who has a knack for dreaming and imagination. When Willy Wonka, the secluded owner of an infamous chocolate factory, opens his door to five lucky kids, Charlie, of course, is the holder of a golden ticket. A tour of the chocolate factory ensues as kids disappear one by one because of their entitled and bratty behaviour.

Director Thom Allison has a lot of fun with the location of this piece, through projections putting it in Toronto’s own backyard! Projections by Laura Warren show the streets of Toronto, and costumes at the top of show are clearly set for the Torontonian winter. Directorially, I’m not sure if the number of actors cast in the show served the production as a whole. With only 12 actors, all of the Oompa Loompas were double cast, with some of the kids and parents on the tour of the factory. Not only does this seem like a quick-change nightmare for the actors themselves and make transitions in and out of Oompa Loompa numbers long, but it also makes the stage feel quite empty.

The highlight of this show is the costume and set design. The costumes by Ming Wong are technicolour and fantastical, using texture and silhouette to their full extent. There are also a number of really fun wigs that I personally found amusing. The set design by Brandon Kleiman is fresh out of a CGI dream, executing many magical tricks and hijinks in front of the audience. From a flowing chocolate fountain made of a brown curtain and projected river to a character who flies away as a blown-up purple balloon dummy.

The biggest problem with the production is the sound levelling and music. They were performing to a track, but it was always a little bit too loud and drowned out the actors. The orchestration itself also felt quite slow, I’m not sure how much control YPT had over this, but it really felt like each song was dragging and could use a quicker pace. The mics themselves also seemed to be unreliable, sometimes not turning on in time and cutting in and out. This sound issue really dulls everyone’s performances, making the vocals feel lacklustre (even though I can hear that with the correct mixing, they would sound fantastic!)

The performances from this ensemble cast were full of vigour! They really leaned into the magical feeling of this piece; Willy Wonka, in particular (Michael Therriault), is enchanting. He’s really nailed the larger persona of Wonka, especially in his playful physicality. The choreography by Allison Plamondon is bounding and silly. There’s a squirrel ballet number, ’70s disco and hive-mind Oompa Loompa prancing.

The structure of the musical itself is quite slow with a lot of unneeded exposition. Even I, as an adult, was feeling a bit restless when we hit around the halfway mark of the run, and Charlie hadn’t even received his golden ticket yet.

If you’re a parent considering bringing your little one to this show, I’d recommend you rewatch the movie beforehand. Yes, it’s magical, but it’s also quite dark and there were a few kids in the audience who were upset and one who left crying by the end of it. YPT recommends it for audiences aged six and up, but frankly, I’d caution that it may be a little more fun for the eight- to 10-year-old range due to the slow pace and heavy material.