Never trust a man with a moustache…

Watermill Youth Ensemble: Emil and the Detectives

at The Watermill, Bagnor

from Thursday, March 27, to Saturday, March 29

Review by ROBIN STRAPP

EMIL and the Detectives by Erich Kästner and adapted by Carl Miller is thrillingly brought to the stage by The Watermill theatre’s Youth Ensemble, inventively directed by Heidi Bird.

The story begins in the German town of Neustadt in the 1930s.

Emil, strikingly played by Flo, is about to go on an adventure of a lifetime travelling to see his grandmother and cousins in Berlin. His hairdressing mother (Freya) gives him 140 marks and warns Emil not to lose it.

After a tearful farewell Emil catches the train filled with excitement and some trepidation.

Sharing the carriage is the strange moustached and bowler-hatted man Mr Snow, a powerful portrayal from Joshua. He offers Emil a piece of apple and lulls him to sleep by counting sheep. When he wakes up Mr Snow and the money has gone.

Emil gets off at the wrong station and is frightened at what his mother might say.

He can’t go to the police as he was seen painting the nose on a local monument red and considers himself to also be a criminal.

Luckily, he is found by Toots (Polly) and a band of child ‘detectives’. It’s decided that the gang will help Emil to regain his money. They follow Mr Snow to a restaurant and hotel, constantly keeping an eye on him.

There is a wonderfully hilariously exciting car chase through Berlin eventually leading to the bank where the evil Mr Snow tries to change the marks for smaller bills but is finally caught.

The enthusiasm and high energy of the large ensemble cast was impressive with wonderful choreographed crowd scenes and constant movement that purposefully filled the stage.

It was a joy to watch the playfulness and characters this young cast had created, far too many to mention by name.

Jacob Wu’s stunning design with curved arches and sweeping stairs creates the stations and the stylish costumes captured the period and was beautifully lit by Nicola Crawford.

There was so much to delight in this superb production and we were told the moral of the story is “never trust a man with a moustache”.

Bravo!