Review: THE 78 STOREY TREEHOUSE at The Space Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre

Reviewed by Barry Lenny, Tuesday 24th April 2018.

Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton are back, and they are higher than ever before in The 78 Storey Treehouse. They have added more storeys, and more stories, to the ever-expanding treehouse in which they live. Once again, the book, the sixth in the series, with words by Griffiths and pictures by Denton, has been adapted by Richard Tulloch into a stage play for children of all ages presented by CDP Kids.

This time, a high profile film director, Mr Big Shot, is coming to make a film about the two and their home, but all does not go smoothly. Films, he states, only need action, and so there is no need for Andy as a narrator. Terry goes ahead with the filming, leaving Andy jealous and hurt and their friendship strained.

The fun and games sees the introduction of a combining machine, a scribbletorium, Andyland, and a high-security potato chip storage facility, guarded by a duck. For any further details, you'll need to buy tickets.

Samuel Welsh and Teale Howie play Andy and Terry, with Freya Pragt, as their friend Jill, and Tim Carroll, as Mr. Big Shot, the latter two also playing a wide range of other characters, from a pair of spy cows to a professional monkey actor, Mel Gibbon, brought in to replace Andy in the film. The laugh a minute, high-energy performance, with the clever script enhanced by toe-tapping musical numbers, kept the audience enthralled, thanks to these four wonderful performers who threw themselves into their roles.

Director, Liesel Badorrek, maintains a fast pace from her very fine cast and makes good use of Mark Thompson's imaginative set and costume design. The lighting, by Nicholas Higgins, and sound, by Ross Johnston, are both integral and important to the production, too.

This is a great family outing, and just in time for the school holidays, so make the most of it. See the show, and then buy the book in the foyer, to keep the kids occupied even longer.

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