The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe

The Adamson Theatre Company at Wesley College St Kilda Road by permission of Hal Leonard and Music Theatre International presents Middle School Students in

The Adamson Theatre Company at Wesley College St Kilda Road, by special permission of Hal Leonard and Music Theatre International, presents Middle School Students in

Book and lyrics by Irita Kutchmy

Based on the novel by C.S. Lewis

Music by Irita Kutchmy

Directed by Clare Cooper and Nathan Armstrong Musical Direction by Sarah Patterson Designed by Ron Tidhar (OW2009) and David Browne (0W2010) Costumes by Stephanie Des Barres and Jill Welch Technical Direction by Sabino Del Balso Performed in Adamson Hall, 19-21 October, 2011

THE WONDROUS WORLD BEHIND A WARDROBE This delightful musical adaptation of CS Lewis’s “fantasy novel for children”, as it is usually described, has plenty of interest for adults too, who will recognise some of its darker tones in the age-old struggle between the forces of good and the wiles of evil. The novel was first published in 1950 and has been widely read ever since, and along with its prequel The Magician’s Nephew, and its sequels, Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Horse and his Boy, it forms part of a series collectively known as The Chronicles of Narnia. The temper of the original was at least partly influenced by the Second World War, and Lewis’s imagination is informed generally by the great struggle he had witnessed within Europe against tyranny (personified in his story as the White Witch) by the sublime powers of universal good (Aslan the Lion, and particularly perhaps the British Lion?), and more specifically by the evacuation to the countryside of many London children during the Blitz. Lewis created in Narnia, the world beyond the wardrobe discovered by the Pevensie children when they are relocated to a country house, a perfect fantasy landscape for his great themes to be played out in an engrossing and entertaining way.

The human children become more and more absorbed into this magical world, and despite a few hiccups (an inclination for power and deep betrayal by one of their number), and the exposure of one or two mandatory flaws in their natures, they sort things out in a manner surely to be expected of British children in juvenile fiction. As well as displaying certain religious overtones, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe can also be read as an homage to British pluck and good sense, and in this way reflects its historical origins. In 1945, the Lion, with a bit of help from the Eagle and the Bear, had crushed underfoot the White Witch of Nazism.

Time magazine included the novel in its One Hundred Best English Language Novels from 1923 to 2005, and its literary significance is indisputable. It really legitimised fantasy as a suitable medium for children’s fiction, and was ground breaking in this respect; JRR Tolkien in Lord of the Rings would, of course, take this to another level altogether, but in many ways CS Lewis’s Narnia chronicles confirmed that fantasy fiction could be both entertaining and instructional, and was in no way encouraging a dangerous disjunction in children’s minds between fantasy and reality. Lewis rightly believed that the young, bless them, were perfectly able to make this

distinction without suffering great moral harm. This conviction rescued subsequent generations from a single diet of children’s stories that were entrenched in the “real world” of spies, smugglers, grumpy uncles, indulgent aunts, cramped caravans, flying aces defying impossible odds, and compendious hampers. The staple “healthy” diet of the Famous Five, the Secret Seven, Biggles and Gimlet was supplemented by CS Lewis’s excursions into fantasy worlds like Narnia, surely to the relief of those many children whose wild imaginings had long driven them secretly in this direction. Fantasy has flourished since.

One of the simple joys of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is its depiction of the courage and wisdom of its child heroes. They are the “two daughters of Eve” and the “two sons of Adam” whom an ancient prophecy has decreed will one day liberate Narnia from the evil spell of the White Witch, restore the power of the Lion, and secure a harmonious future for this wonderful (and overtly symbolic) land behind the wardrobe. They go about it in fine style, overcoming initial scepticism about the very existence of such a land, and in one case a dangerous betrayal; are famously tempted by a surfeit of Turkish Delight; and are finally triumphantly crowned the true kings and queens of Narnia. Lewis never loses sight of his human characters amidst the creation of a fantasy world; the goodness of the world is in our hands, and again Lewis’s narrative affirms the faith, sincerity and radiant innocence of children as amongst the most powerful forces in nature. Of course in some ways he labours the Christian analogies (the novel has been often criticised on these grounds, as being overly didactic and doctrinal), but it is the imaginative truths which prevail in the end. And anyway, young readers have always been rather good at discarding the “hidden meanings” and just enjoying the adventure.

PLOT SUMMARY The story begins in 1940 during World War II, when four siblings--Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie--are evacuated from London to escape the Blitz. They are sent to live with Professor Digory Kirk, who lives in a country house in the English countryside.

to exchange his own life for Edmund’s. The Witch ties Aslan to the Stone Table and then kills him with a knife. The following morning Aslan is restored to life.

Unknown to the witch, “deeper magic from before the dawn of time” allows someone who willingly dies in the place of another to return to life.

While the four children are exploring the house, Lucy looks into a wardrobe and discovers a portal to a magical world named Narnia. There she meets a faun named Tumnus. He invites her to tea in his home. There he confesses he planned to report her to the tyrannical White Witch but has thought better of it. Upon her return to the human world, Lucy’s siblings do not believe her story about Narnia. Her spiteful older brother Edmund enters the wardrobe and meets the White Witch, who befriends him and offers him magical Turkish delight that enchants him. She encourages him to bring his siblings to her in Narnia, with the promise that he shall rule over them. Edmund joins Lucy in Narnia and then returns with her to the Professor’s house. But after returning, he lies to Peter and Susan: he denies Lucy’s claim that Narnia lies behind the wardrobe.

Aslan allows Lucy and Susan to ride on his back as he hurries to the Witch’s castle. There he breathes upon the statues, restoring them to life. Peter and Edmund lead the Narnian army in a battle against the White Witch’s army but are losing. Aslan arrives with the former statues as reinforcements. The Narnians rout the evil army, and Aslan kills the Witch.

The Pevensie children are named kings and queens of Narnia. Several years later, now adults and mounted on horseback, the siblings go hunting for a White Stag. Just beyond the lamppost, branches become coats. The siblings are back in the wardrobe and are children again. They re-enter the Professor’s house.

Eventually all four of the children enter Narnia together while hiding in the wardrobe. They meet Mr. and Mrs. Beaver, who invite them to dinner. The beavers recount a prophecy that the witch’s power will fail when two Sons of Adam and two Daughters of Eve fill the four thrones at Cair Paravel. The beavers tell of the true king of Narnia, a great lion named Aslan, who has been absent for many years but is now “on the move again.”

Edmund sneaks away to the White Witch. Her castle is filled with stone statues--enemies she has petrified. The beavers realize where Edmund has gone and abandon their home, leading the children to Aslan. As they travel, they notice that the snow is melting, indicating that the White Witch’s spell is breaking. A visit by Father Christmas confirms this.

The children and the Beavers meet with Aslan and his army. Peter engages in his first battle, killing a wolf who threatens Susan.

The Witch approaches to speak with Aslan, insisting that according to “deep magic from the dawn of time” she has the right to execute Edmund as a traitor. Aslan speaks with her privately and persuades her to renounce her claim on Edmund’s life. That evening, Aslan secretly leaves the camp, but is followed by Lucy and Susan. Aslan has bargained

Source: Wikepedia

SCENES AND MUSICAL NUMBERS ACT ONE Prologue 1. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

Ensemble

Scene One: the Hall of Professor Kirk’s house Scene Two: the Spare Room containing the Wardrobe Scene Three: the Woods in Narnia 2. Please Come to Tea

Mr Tumnus, Lucy, Animals and Chorus

Scene Four: Mr Tumnus’s Cave 3. Narnia

Mr Tumnus. Lucy, Animals and Chorus

Scene Five: the Spare Room 4. The Teasing Song Scene Six: the Woods in Narnia 5. Turkish Delight

Peter, Susan, Edmund and Chorus White Witch, Edmund, Rabble and Chorus

Scene Seven: the Spare Room Scene Eight: the Woods in Narnia 6. Where Are We? 7. The Adventure Song Scene Nine: Mr Tumnus’s Cave 8. Poor Mr Tumnus Scene Ten: Another Part of the Woods 9. Cair Paravel

Peter, Susan, Animals and Chorus Peter, Susan, Lucy and Chorus Peter, Susan, Lucy and Chorus Mr and Mrs Beaver, Animals and Chorus

ACT TWO Scene One: the same as the previous (the Woods in Narnia) 10. Hurry, Hurry Mr and Mrs Beaver, Peter, Susan, Lucy and Chorus Scene Two: The Road to the Witch’s Castle 11. Edmund’s Song Scene Three: The Witch’s Courtyard 12. The Witch of Narnia Rules OK!

Edmund White Witch, Maugrim, Edmund, Rabble

Scene Four: A Cave on the way to the Stone Table 13. The Spell is Breaking Father Christmas, Mr and Mrs Beaver, Peter, Susan, Lucy 14. The Welcome Song Aslan, Animals and Chorus 15. Waiting and Wondering Peter, Susan, Lucy, Mr and Mrs Beaver, Animals 16. Aslan’s Song Aslan and Company

SCENES AND MUSICAL NUMBERS ACT TWO (continued) Scene Five: The Stone Table 17. Here Comes the Cat 18. How Could They Do It? 19. Deeper magic from the Dawn of Time

White Witch and Rabble Susan, Lucy, Animals and Chorus Principals and Chorus

Scene Six: The Woods in Narnia Scene Seven: The Spare Room 20. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe [reprise]

Chorus

Approximate running times: ACT ONE 60 minutes | ACT TWO 50 minutes There will be a 20 minute interval between acts, during which refreshments will be available in the foyer of Adamson Hall.

CHARACTERS THE HUMANS Peter Susan Edmund Lucy Professor Kirk Mrs Macready

WILL ORR ELOISE BAGNARA LACHIE BAGNARA ATHINA WILSON SAM WASSMANN ISABEL COCKS

IN NARNIA Mr Tumnus, a fawn Mr Beaver Mrs Beaver Aslan, the lion The White Witch Father Christmas Maugrim, a wolf A Robin

GABE NERI JULIAN PETERS TANSY GORMAN MEG DUNCAN CYNTHIA WELLS REMI BELAND BEN WALTER LAURA GILBERTSON

ALL OTHER PARTS PLAYED BY MEMBERS OF THE ENSEMBLE: CHILLI ANDERSON JESSICA BUCHWALD OLIVIA CARR GILLIE DUNCAN EMMA GROVES SUHANI JAIN ZHUN CONG KIAT TAHJ MANDE MADELEINE NEATE CHARLOTTE OMOND GEORGIA PLANT MADALENA RUSSO OLIVIA SPANOS LUCY STEWART MOIRA TIRTHA CHRISTOPHER WARWICK

MARGARITA BASSOVA SAMMY BODYCOMB MATTHEW COOKE HELENA DUNIEC SOPHIE HUNT SAM JOHNSTON HARRISON LEGGATT HILARY MCADAM SAVANNAH NOACK CAMERON OWENS-GALE CAMERON POLLAERS MIA SHARP LISA STEVENS LAUREN STEWART EMILY TUAN-MU NIKI WEIBRECHT

THE BAND Keyboard Drums Bass Woodwind Conductor

CLIO RENNER MICHAEL MCNAB TOM PETIT TOM NOONAN SARAH PATTERSON

LACHLAN BERRY HARRY BURMEISTER KIRSTIN DEIGHTON-SMITH ISABELLA GOODWIN AVA JACKSON FARAH KHAIRAT JACOB LINGARD DAISY MCAREE FERGUS O’DONOGHUE FELIX PASCOE SAMY RAJAGOPALAN GRETA SCHROFFEL ELYSE STEWART LOUIS TAFFS CHLOE VOTSKOS ALMA ZYGIER

WILL ORR as Peter

ELOISE BAGNARA as Susan

LACHIE BAGNARA as Edmund

ATHINA WILSON as Lucy

CYNTHIA WELLS as The White Witch

JULIAN PETERS as Mr Beaver

TANSY GORMAN as Mrs Beaver

GABE NERI as Mr Tumnus

MEG DUNCAN as Aslan

SAM WASSMAN as Professor Kirk

ISABEL COCKS as Mrs Macready

Remi Beland as Father Christimas

Laura Gilbertson as A Robin

Ben Walter as Maugrim

PRODUCTION TEAM

Acknowledgement: The set designers and builders are indebted to the shopping skills of Tom Rogers-Woollett, and for the generous contribution of his Monday mornings.