Writers: Kerry Frampton and Ben Hales
Director: Lucy Cuthbertson
Constructing, managing and controlling storytelling is the basis of Shakespeare’s Globe’s new summer family show in the air-conditioned haven of the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, now finding all-year-round use as the venue’s second theatre. Written by Kerry Frampton and Ben Hales, A World Elsewhere is filled with fun games and interactive moments that allow children to play story-based games with exuberant characters using their imaginations to steer some of the action while learning (tacitly) about heroes, villains, dramatic jeopardy and concepts of narrative control.
While waiting for their creator, Cass, a 12-year-old schoolboy, his characters Cobweb, Sarah and Big Man live in his made-up world telling stories and remembering some of the great tales they have told with Cass before. But with something happening in the real world that draws Cass away, his colourful, adventure-loving friends mysteriously disappear, and he must choose whether to go on one more journey to save them.
Running at 1 hour and 50 minutes including interval, the real mark of a good family show is how well the target audience engages with the premise and wants to join in. For A World Elsewhere, there is no stopping them, and once the fourth wall has been broken with the actors engaging with the younger audience as they take their seats, the rest becomes a riot of calling out, innovative ideas and collective joining in. It’s clear that the characters appeal to them and that the children become invested in the story that is being created, helped by the structure that Frampton and Hales have created, which reminds the audience repeatedly that they too are characters in this and their own stories.
And it is skilfully managed with pre-show drawing, costume making as well as hide and seek, before in-show opportunities to affect the plot and name new creations, making this a managed but collective act of storytelling or “a place made of stories” as the cast notes. And the savvy children are full of surprising but effective suggestions, including both administering CPR and undertaking surgery to revive two unconscious characters who need to be restored to life. Other particularly enjoyable moments include an attempted musical of Macbeth to recognisable refrains from Les Misérables, Annie and Kiss Me Kate – a few references for the grown-ups.
And being the Globe, Shakespeare features more heavily in the second half when his creations become trapped in nice, easy worlds with no negative incident, nodding to Coriolanus (from where this play’s title is derived), The Comedy of Errors, Hamlet, Henry V, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Romeo & Juliet. Taking the danger out of these stories adds to the amusement, while our story is stalked by a Dementor-like puppet called the Shadow Monster (created by Naomi Oppenheim); otherwise the story would be “boring.”
With Frampton playing Sarah, Kyle Ndukuba as Cass, Tanvi Virmani as Cobweb and Zachary Willis as Big Guy, the four actors play many characters playing themselves while making sure everyone feels part of their overall story. There may be worlds elsewhere, but this summer, your children will almost certainly want to be in this one.
Runs until 30 August 2026
