Review: THE RAILWAY CHILDREN, Exeter Northcott Theatre

Director Paul Jepson expressed in an interview in the show's programme that he was not at all daunted by the technical challenges of staging an adaptation of E. Nesbit's The Railway Children.

In enlisting Timothy Bird to create the backdrops with captivating video projections, he has certainly managed his aim, which is to present a show that's able to bring the heartwarming story to audiences around the country, while maintaining a visual wow factor.

No, there's no real steam train - something that made the recent production at London's King's Cross Theatre so breathtaking - but with additional rolling stock set-pieces and scenic settings, the new touring production from the ever-growing creative hub at Exeter's Northcott is still impressive.

The Railway Children is typically British - all cucumber sandwiches and jolly summer days - and the original book is a classic work. It became even more a part of our popular culture following the 1970 film adaptation, which made a star of the young Jenny Agutter.

The story follows three children, who, after their father mysteriously goes away, move to a Yorkshire village and into a house near to the railway station. Thrust from wealth into poverty, the family attempts to maintain some semblance of normality and the children spend their days waving to the trains as they go by.

In the same vein as a charming Sunday night television series, they happen upon adventures along the way, and there is a loose line of plot to hold the whole thing together, which results, eventually, in a positive outcome.

It's all very twee, and some of the dialogue is just far too slow in Dave Simpson's adaptation. The scenes that don't help to advance the narrative could do with a trim, but the story is still, nevertheless, quite engaging.

Cast wise, it's also a bit of a mixed bag, with Stewart Wright a perfect fit as Perks - especially when exhibiting a soupçon of comedy in Act Two - and Andrew Joshi equally charming as both the Doctor and Father.

It's always a bit tricky when you cast adults as children, and although all four of the juvenile leads are adept, their wide-eyed gullibility feels a bit forced at times.

There are also a few bits where the trotting around the stage to symbolise leaving the house and the pause in the action to ascend the stairs further slows down the pace.

That said, with a bit more tightening up, this show has the potential to become a family favourite, and I'll look forward to seeing it again a little further into its journey.

The Railway Children is at Exeter Northcott until 25 June.

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