Review: THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE, King's Theatre

The Ocean At The End Of The Lane is a National Theatre production adapted by Joel Horwood, directed by Katy Rudd and based on the novel by Neil Gaiman.

We first meet Boy as an adult, coming back to his childhood home for a funeral. He meets a neighbour, Old Mrs Hempstock and he starts to remember fragments of his best friend Lettie. Flashback to the early 1980s and a traumatic incident happens almost a year after his mother's death. Now played by Keir Ogilvy, he's a lonely 12-year-old who spends most of his time reading as he doesn't have many friends. He meets Lettie Hempstock (Millie Hikasa) who takes him on adventures and introduces him to her family and a whole new world.

His home life is unstable as the family are still grieving their mother and his father is renting out Boy's bedroom to lodgers. Their current lodger has completed suicide as a result of gambling debts, a fact that Lettie and her family seem to know before the police. Suddenly, money starts appearing. Lettie explains that this means a 'flea' (a rather cutesy name for a horrendous monster) is trying to cross over into our world and the pair set out on a mission to prevent it from happening.

This stage production is beyond anything I could have imagined for bringing this fantasy story to life. The lighting design, the use of sound and the special effects are incredible. There's a lot to unpack in the plot and it is a gripping twisty experience. Through the use of puppetry, illusions and flying effects it feels as though you're watching a CGI-filled film rather than a stage play. 

Boy and Lettie take us into the dark forest to face the flea and it's an intensely creepy atmosphere. It's tense and chilling but this is all crucial to the storytelling and not just to show off with special effects.

The Ocean At The End Of The Lane is not to be missed as it combines fantastical storytelling with the realities of grief for a young boy while creating a truly impressive spectacle. 

Photo credit: Brinkhoff-Moegenburg

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