Writer: Kenneth Grahame
Adaptor: Glenn Elston
Director: Otis Elson
Kew Gardens by the lake is a lovely setting to stage The Wind in the Willows for a young audience, as a swan glides serenely through the water, although it is quite a walk from the entrance gates for young and old. There are no facilities near the performance areas, so bring a picnic and chairs or a rug and use the toilets by the entrance gates. But there is a lovely atmosphere as the young audience play before the show and the techies tease them about crossing the yellow line that marks the edge of the stage. Only the frequent planes descending on the Heathrow flight path disturb the idyllic setting.
The production by the Australian Shakespeare Company is their 10th season presenting in Kew Gardens and the 40th anniversary of Glenn Elston’s adaptation of the famous Kenneth Grahame novel, so we are assured that the young cast know that the material works for the audience with its silliness and interactive elements. The first act uses the natural setting as we meet the famous characters, although it is Chief White Rabbitt (Jacob Leeson), presumably borrowed from Alice in Wonderland, who kicks off the show and recruits all the young audience members and a few adults as his army of rabbits. We are told to waggle our ears and wiggle our noses as we become his followers.
The first of the Grahame characters to appear is the naughty Weasel (Scott Gutteridge) strumming his guitar and pretending to be the rabbit and our friend. Next up is the shy, retiring Mole (Cristina Wells) on a spring-cleaning mission, but she is quickly won over to the team and plays a mean violin. Ratty (Ritesh Manugula) arrives next by rowing boat across the lake, to add the banjo to the team. Soon the older Badger (Daniel Page) arrives reading his paper and hoping to join the picnic.
When Otter (Rupert Sadler) appears with flippers for feet, followed by young Portly ( Holly Guiney), the team is complete. This first act charms the young audience with the excellent facial make-up; it is very much character-driven with very little plot. We catch a glimpse of Toad (Tom Whalley) on the lake in a canoe, and so the adventure can finally begin.
Before it can, we are asked to relocate to Toad of Toad Hall, where the second act takes place, a 10-minute stroll into the Wild Woods behind the Chief Rabbitt as a sort of Pied Piper for his rabbit followers. At last, the adventures, as readers of the original book will remember, can start as we get to know the self-centred egoistical “Famous Mr Toad* outside his Hall before he acquires a car, has an accident, gets arrested, finds himself in court, sentenced to jail, escapes dressed as a washerwoman only to find that the Weasel and the stouts have occupied his home and need to be ejected. The sequence is heavy on plot and light on detail but delivered with energy, confidence and plenty of audience interaction. If you bring a picnic, don’t be surprised to find one of these animals picking through the hamper.
There is a brief interactive interlude when the young members go off to find Portly in the Wild Woods while the less mobile are entertained by Weasel and Rabbitt with a rendition of Queen’s Don’t Stop Me Now before the battle to recapture Toad Hall commences. The under-10s in the audience seem to love the show with its silliness and interaction, and while older audience members can enjoy seeing their children responding to live theatre, they might like a little more storytelling to bring the famous book to life. But as an afternoon out in Kew Gardens it is highly enjoyable and good fun.
Runs until 23 August 2026
