Kiki’s Delivery Service, Southwark Playhouse, SE1

reviewed for The Times, 22 December 2016

©RICHARD DAVENPORT

Four star_rating

If you’ve read Eiko Kadono’s Japanese bestseller, you know the drill. If you haven’t, welcome to an enchanting new world of whimsy and witchcraft.

Kiki the little witch is desperate to prove to her parents that she is ready to take on adult responsibilities, even if it means moving far from home to take the position of official witch in a new town. Fortunately, she can rely on her trusty broomstick and her loving cat, Jiji.

The book has already spawned a series, a manga film (dubbed by Kirsten Dunst) and a live action remake. Now Jessica Siân has adapted it for the stage. The results are dreamy. It’s always a good sign when you see the young director Kate Hewitt’s name on a project. With Kiki’s Delivery Service she proves she can make magic for children — the show is recommended for ages seven and up — every bit as effectively as she creates dystopia for adults elsewhere. (Her darker work includes Caryl Churchill’s Far Away and James Rushbrooke’s Tomcat.)

There is the odd duff moment. As Kiki’s father, Tom Greaves is unprepossessing, especially in an unnecessary framing device. However, once things get going, Robin Guiver’s expert movement and puppetry work immerses us in a world of talking cats, high-risk train journeys and, of course, flying broomsticks.

As with the Studio Ghibli film, we are in a cultural landscape that incorporates Japanese and European elements. For a start, we have witches who like cats and brooms — Japanese witches, the evil kitsune-tsukai, prefer to work with foxes.

Kiki is played with high energy by Alice Hewkin. Paksie Vernon also impresses. Yet the real star is Jiji the talking cat. Deftly handled by the War Horse alumnus Matthew Forbes, this is a slick, snide puppet with a sense of his own worth. (Forbes hangs back, channeling Jiji’s high-fashion soul in full Willy Wonka gear.) Your little ones won’t have to be cat lovers to absorb the lessons of this gentle coming-of-age tale, but it helps. Miaow!