The making of Aslan (From Watford Observer)

The making of Aslan

3:47pm Thursday 15th December 2011 in Theatre By Melanie Dakin

Creating a lion is not a task that every seasonal show faces but for the Company of Ten’s production of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe at the Abbey Theatre, it was pretty important to get the right look for the animal king, Aslan.

To this end, local artist George White came on board to fashion the majestic beast.

Director Katherine Barry says: “George started by making a lion mask and then moulded the head out of latex and fibreglass. “As lovers of CS Lewis’ classic story know, Aslan is no ordinary lion. And our Aslan is no ordinary puppet; he is a walking, talking character in an extraordinary play.“

Being the daughter of two professional actors, Katherine grew up with the theatre and went on to star in South Pacific in the West End with Gemma Craven and had roles in TV before moving to St Albans and starting her own family . “When my kids were growing up it was difficult as a mum to maintain a professional career, especially on tour, so I made a conscious decision that my family comes first.“

Katherine has maintained her love of theatre by teaching drama at StageCoach in Garston for the past 15 years. Her children have followed in her footsteps. Her daughter Emma, 19, is studying musical theatre and her son Daniel, 22, who went to drama school and had the lead role in Jesus Christ Superstar with Cassio Operatic, has gone on to pursue a career as a professional actor.

“Daniel’s been in some independent films, including one about the war in Afghanistan and more recently he was filming a horror film,“ says Katherine.

Aslan is no ordinary lion. And our Aslan is no ordinary puppet; he is a walking, talking character

Katherine Barry

This Christmas show marks Katherine first solo outing as a director. “I’ve assisted on a couple of Christmas shows before such as Pinocchio and Babe the Sheep Pig and the Ray Clooney farce Out of Order.

“It’s a great process and I’m particularly interested in this piece as it’s such a well-loved story. Most people have grown up with the book, the BBC series or the films.“ As well as getting her animals in order, Katherine carefully selected her cast of children.

“The youngest is nine and the oldest 16. Finding the children has been my biggest challenge as they’re on stage for practically the whole show. Thankfully, more than 50 turned up, so I’ve been able to cast two teams.“

Another important factor of the show has been to stage the famous battle scene. Katherine enlisted professional fight director Roger Bartlett to ensure the actors were convincing and stayed safe while wielding weapons.

“What’s not to like about playing with swords?“ says Katherine. “It is important that a staged battle really looks like a battle, but naturally the actors’ safety is the prime concern. Roger has a wealth of experience, so he knows exactly how to handle the actors and what can be expected of them in these situations.

“It has been a tricky show to stage as you don’t have resources of a Hollywood film or West End. Still, we’ve done it as magically as we can.

“The play, in essence, is about good versus evil and everyone loves to see the baddie get defeated at the end.”

The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe adapted by Glyn Robbins, comes to the Abbey Theatre, Holywell Hill, St Albans on December 17, 18 and 27 at 2.30pm and 5.30pm and on December 15, 16, 20-23 and 28 at 7.30pm. Details: 01727 857861, www.abbeytheatre.org.uk