Bosco!

I am a huge lover of the performing arts which is no doubt due to the fact my parents who like to consider themselves ‘culture vultures’, introduced me to the theatre at a very young age. I was hooked from the very first opening curtain and when I spied an advertisement last week for Lambert Puppet Theatre’s Cinderella playing in the Strand Theatre in Carrick-On -Suir, I seized upon an opportunity to familiarize my four year old son and three year old daughter with the wonderful world of live entertainment and booked four tickets for the family immediately.

I had been advised when I booked that the doors were opening at half one and the show would be starting at two o’clock sharp so we arrived at the comfortable time of quarter to two which I felt meant that we were in plenty of time for the performance but weren’t so early that the children would get bored and start asking to go home or worse – begin to dismantle the theatre seat by seat, row by row out of sheer boredom (it could happen!).

Two o’clock came and went and what I could not understand is that parents and children continued to arrive long after the curtain should have gone up. In fact, at half two there were still people leisurely strolling in the door as though they had all the time in the world. I was less than impressed but thankfully my two little darlings did not start to fidget until just before the show started at twenty five to three and luckily all thoughts of disgruntlement went out of the window as they were immediately captivated by the one and the only Irish institution that is Bosco.

It was still Paula Lambert from the original television series of Bosco doing the vocals for the loveable red haired puppet and she was just fantastic. She shouted “Hello boys and Girls” and the entire audience screamed “Hello Bosco!” back including my hubby and I who were immediately transported thirty years back in time. The sketch was fast and furious and just hilarious. There was a bold crow that kept appearing and stealing all of Bosco’s prized processions which included a less than robust flower, a smelly blanket and an egg. When this happened Bosco would make us shout “You bully. You woolly, bully. You woolly, bully, bunter. BANANA HEAD!” and Andrew and Charlotte found this so funny that all evening they have been shouting “BANANA HEAD!” to each other and then collapsing on the floor in peals of laughter.

The story progressed along to where a caterpillar that looked suspiciously like a chicken, hatched from a chicken’s egg (you may need to stretch your imagination a bit here) and turned into a butterfly much to the children’s delight and amazement. The audience lured the bold crow to the stage by tweeting like birds and then scared him away again by pretending that we were monsters and the entire assemble seemed to be beside themselves with glee and excitement. I was amazed at how Bosco can still fascinate and delight children today even with all of the entertainment that they have at their finger tips. It really was the best fun that I have had with my two little ones in ages.

Bosco left the stage and made way for the main event which was Cinderella and there I am afraid to say, the show started to slide downhill. While you could argue that wooden puppets with mouths that don’t move are authentic, the truth is that the puppets looked a little bit old and unattractive. The set in the puppet box was dull and a bit shabby and the puppateers lowered the pitch of their voices and the pace of the entire show slowed right down. The audience grew quieter and quieter and little attention spans started to wander. In fact, two young girls sitting behind me who couldn’t have been more than eight began a conversation about a bracelet.

To say that Cinderella was not good would be too harsh a criticism; it’s just that after the delights of Bosco, I’m afraid to say that my children and I found Cinderella a little bit dull.

That’s not to say that they didn’t enjoy themselves though. They both firmly agreed leaving the theatre that it was “The best show ever” and have not stopped talking about Bosco ever since.

If I was to give Lambert Puppet theatre any advice it would be to say that it might have been an idea to sandwich the production of Cinderella with a scene from Bosco at either side so that the show could end on a high or even (dare I say it) drop Cinderella altogether and stick with what you are good at. Why not do an entire performance dedicated to the little red haired man himself? It’s the parents who buy the tickets and I believe that it would be a sell out. Bosco is still the best puppet this side of the Atlantic and four million Irish adults and a roomful of children in Carrick-on-Suir can’t be wrong ........can they?