Hairy Maclary Hootenanny at The Maidment

By FRANCIS TILL

At 10.30am on opening day, The Hairy Maclary Hootenanny played to a tough house of mostly preschool children, including my son. These kids know the material by heart and hold the characters in loving regard.

More, they're not about to put up with near-misses. The show either goes or it doesn't and the price of failure is chaos.

From the start, however, it was clear that we had a winner on our hands. Part of it is because Lynley Dodd's books are terrific.

Every Kiwi parent knows how well they lend themselves to theatrical interpretation. But even more of Hootenanny's hit rate comes from the high aesthetic values Paul Jenden (choreography, costuming and design) and Jan Bolton (music) have used in staging these classic stories.

It helps, too, that the cast is brilliant, even if most are anonymous inside inventive costumes that bring all of Hairy Maclary's friends and tormentors to vivid life. The programme would benefit from associating names with roles.

As the voice of the Hootenanny and its host, Jackie Clarke couldn't be more perfect. Effervescent, she brings the songs home and can get even a sea of 4-year-olds to clap in unison.

It's more a Slinky Malinki review, though, than a Hairy Maclary Hootenanny, possibly because cats offer more latitude for dancers.

Of the six books that make up the production, three are Slinky's. Hairy does have his moments, though, and Schnitzel von Krumm receives special attention in telling his story, Basketwork. But the rest, and the best, is all cat.

Well, not all cat. There are four butlers with shocking red hair who buttle up a storm and a cast of puppets that add a nifty dimension.

One new work, Slinky Malinki Open the Door, was too long, and the children grew restless. But when a couple of butlers attacked each other, all was saved by general hilarity.

My son's verdict: can we go again?