Review: THE LIFE AND ADVENTURES OF SANTA CLAUSE

This year, the Christmas offering at Pitlochry Festival Theatre is an immersive experience for all of the family. The Life and Adventures of Santa Clause is a short film (with a run time of around 30 minutes) that can be viewed on their large movie screen with plenty of space for social distancing. There's a winter wonderland that you can journey through on your way to Santa's grotto with a gift included for each child. Cosy drinks and snacks are on sale and you will be provided with a digital link to rewatch the film again at home.

Unfortunately, I missed out on the immersive experience so this review is just based on the film. The Life and Adventures of Santa Clause is based on the story by L. Frank Baum and has been adapted by award-winning writer Hannah Lavery.

Young Alice (Rosa Lavery) decides to set a trap on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Clause. Instead of Santa, she wakes to find a fairy (Fiona Wood) in her room who tells her the story of how Santa Clause came to be. As a baby, he was found in the woods and as he grew up he started to learn that not everybody was as kind as the people who raised him. As a young man, Clause encounters Jack Frost and decides to bring balance to the misery of winter and starts to craft wooden toys to give to children to spread some joy.

This is not without its problems as creatures who like to cause mischief live in the woods and try to stop Clause from delivering the gifts. There is some mild peril and creepy goings-on that might unnerve some younger children but overall it's a very family-friendly piece.

The film has been shot in the surroundings of Pitlochry Festival Theatre which will add to the immersive experience for those attending.

With so many pantomimes having been done to death and endless productions of A Christmas Carol, it's refreshing to see a theatre do a lesser-known story. I imagine a lot of the real magic comes from experiencing this film at the winter wonderland but it still makes for a cosy treat to watch at home.

The Life and Adventures of Santa Clause runs at Pitlochry Festival Theatre until 23 December.

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