How do you calm down dozens of overexcited three to six year olds? The answer is deceptively simple when left to Oily Cart, which has a three-decade history of enchanting the most challenging audiences.
The magic begins in the foyer when mole-mining helmets and long-eared rabbit bonnets are handed out as we prepare to follow a shimmering snail trail and enter the world of a fragrant mole hole, basking in cosy, glow worm light.
Writer and director Tim Webb wisely takes the action at a snail’s pace, allowing us to marvel at the unbelievably cute set designed by Claire de Loon and Jens Demant Cole.
Chief moles are Griff Fender and Jumoke Oke as Mr and Mrs Mole, the bumbling parents of baby Millie - a puppet, who is expertly handled by Caroline Partridge.
Their activities are summed up in the catchphrase “sniff and dig” and, together with a deliberately wafer-thin plot and a smattering of songs, they provide the right amount of interest for a young audience.
The best song is that of the great glow worm, complete with her dazzling bottom. It does not go as far as pantomime innuendo, but compared with the extreme gentleness of the rest of the production, it is a not unwelcome step in that direction for the accompanying adults - or “big moles”, as Mr Mole styles them.
Production information can change over the run of the show.
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