I bought tickets to see the performance with my own money and decided to write a review.
I skipped along the yellow (or should I say white and icy) brick road to Dance City to see Joss Arnott Dance adaptation of Tin Man.
Joss Arnott Dance retells the story of Wizard of Oz through the rusty eyes of the Tin Man and their journey to finding their heart and happiness. The Witch knows the Tin Man has no heart and in order for him to get one, she sends him on a mission to find some more oil in return of a receiving a heart.
A creative piece of physical theatre, the costumes were created brilliantly and were recognisable to the characters.
Composed by Anna Appleby, the music punctuated the movement with the strong beat of the drum and hearty percussion. It aided the story and helped it move along.
The Tin Man played by Dominic Coffey physically embodied the character, starting off his movements all stiff and staccato but then as he gets some oil into his hinges, he is fluid and angular.
The Witch played by Charley Mitchell reminded me of a bug, almost spider like. They were light on their feet, as they use their long pointy spindly fingers to elongate their movements to creep around the stage and frighten the characters and the audience.
The Lion played by Yue Ying Ho was sprightly and comical in both nature and movements, I thought of my two cats when I watched Lion. So brave and full of energy, this king of the jungle was ready to fight the Witch.
The dynamics between the trio was interesting to watch as it the story slowly developed, what I found endearing was the relationship between the Tin Man and the Scarecrow. Where we see the Tin Man build up the Scarecrow with objects that are found around him and he magically comes to life- that scene was lovely and it was reminiscent of The Snow Man.
Joss Arnott Dance Tin Man is a magical and funny story that captures our imagination as well as our hearts.
Supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England, the Royal Philharmonic Society with funding from the RPS Drummond Fund and PRS Foundation’s The Open Fund for Organisations.
Co-commissioned by DanceEast, Swindon Dance, Pavilion Dance South West and Kala Sangam. Supported by the University of Sheffield Enable US Project and the University of Salford.
For more information click here http://jossarnottdance.com/productions/tin-man/
For more information click here https://www.dancecity.co.uk/
Gemma's Journey 