'The Enormous Crocodile' review — this snappy, hilarious show delivers theatrical magic for the very youngest of audiences

Read our review of The Enormous Crocodile, now in performances at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre to 7 September.

You’ve probably read the story. Roald Dahl’s picture book The Enormous Crocodile, with illustrations by Quentin Blake, has scared and delighted the nation’s children ever since its publication in 1978. Now, the Regent’s Park Open Air production from 2023 has belly-crawled its way back into the theatre for a short summer run, exploding with all the same imagination as before.

Emily Lim’s staging, aimed at the under-4s, serves up creativity and fun by the fistful. Best of all are the puppets, designed by Toby Olié: a Noah’s Ark of hippopotamuses, elephants, monkeys and birds, each looking as though they’ve stepped straight out of a newly invented board game. The cast switch nimbly between costumes and characters, bringing fresh hilarity — and plenty of animal noises — to the stage with every change. The result is a properly delightful 55-minute journey through the jungle. The one problem? The crocodile itself. For a story that hinges on its slippery villain, Lim’s production never quite gives her the bite she needs.

Instead, this crocodile, played gloriously by Taya Ming, remains a friendly-faced scoundrel — so much so that you almost want to reach out and pat her head. Not exactly the child-eating beast that springs to mind. At the matinee I attended, the audience “oohed” and “aahed” at her every entrance. Even the children (also puppets) onstage giggled when confronted with her gigantic teeth. And when the crowd was invited to pelt her with foam monkey nuts, it was hard not to feel a flicker of pity for the creature after all.

It may not be the stage adaptation Dahl loyalists would hope for, but there’s no denying that this version delivers a generous slice of theatrical magic for the very youngest of audiences. Songs by Suhayla El-Bushra and Ahmed Abdullahi Gallab are packed full of rhyme and rhythm, giving the show a sing-song quality that keeps us humming. They set each scene aptly: before we even meet the enormous crocodile, we learn that she’s “a hungry beast that loves to feast on all that comes [her] way.” It is quite the introduction.

And in the hands of a brilliant cast, the wild world comes alive. Siobhan Athwal leaps and bounds about the stage as the lovable monkey Muggle. The hippopotamus Humpy is made to shake in terror by Ryan Crellin-Simpson. The real hero comes in the form of the majestic elephant Trunky (Nia Stephen), who smiles and stamps as she arrives to save the day.

At the Open Air Theatre, the play sings with a carefree summer spirit. While it might not lean into The Enormous Crocodile’s original menace, it more than makes up for it with colour, charm, and energy. Definitely a snappy performance that sends the kids away grinning from ear to ear.

The Enormous Crocodile is at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre to 7 September. Book The Enormous Crocodile tickets on LondonTheatre.co.uk.

Photo credit: The Enormous Crocodile (Photos by Danny Kaan)