Goodnight Mr Tom: The Theatrical Performance

I mentioned in my Mothers Day blog post that the main gift I'd gotten for my mum was tickets to the theatrical performance of Goodnight Mr Tom in Glasgow's Theatre Royal. It has always been one of her favourite films so I knew she would be excited to go. The show time I had booked wasn't until the early evening so that way we could spend the afternoon together and that is exactly what we did.

My university lectures finished at 3pm that day so that is when our afternoon began. The first thing we did was have a wander around the shops on Sauchiehall Street; mainly Primark and Superdrug because mum was cold and wanted a cardigan and I needed new concealer. Naturally, we ended up getting quite a bit more than a cardigan in Primark but you can't really help in when it is Primark, plus, now that means I have another idea for a blog post and maybe even a video.

We went to Walkabout for dinner since it was close, convenient and is good value for money. My mum insisted on convenience especially because she decided to wear heeled boots that day. Walkabout is very close to my university and is often a popular option for lunches out. The food there is great and there is a good variety to pick from. We opted for a starter of onion rings and chicken strips since neither of us had any lunch prior, my mum decided on the Cheese Burger with regular chips and a side salad, I went for the Piri Piri Chicken with Sweet Potato Fries and a side salad and we both shared a dessert of Berry Pavlova. We barely finished all the food but everything was absolutely delicious, especially the Berry Pavlova. The only thing that disappointed us was that there was no sticky part in the meringue and that's the best bit!

A quick trip to Thornton's for some goodies before the show and we were ready to sit back and enjoy. The performance was as lighthearted as the cast and crew could make it considering the storyline. For those of you who are not aware of the plot line of Goodnight Mr Tom, it is set during WW2 and follows young William Beech, an abused boy as he is evacuated out of London to the countryside and placed with a grumpy, old man; Thomas Oakley. The pair soon form a close bond despite the never ending obstacles thrown in their way. 

Throughout the show, I learned that the boy playing William Beech and the boy playing his best friend Zach were only ten years old and both from London. I would never have even had the courage to ask a question in school never mind travelling around the country performing night after night in front of hundreds and hundreds of people! The boys were absolutely fantastic. Another performer that 100% stood out for me was the woman playing Sammy the dog. The cast did have a prototype of a sheepdog made but there was a woman making all the movements and sounds of the dog. She was absolutely incredible! If you closed your eyes, you would genuinely believe there was a real dog on stage as Sammy. The scenery was also done to a standard of perfection; all the wartime posters and furniture, the back drops of London during the war and of the peaceful countryside the evacuees retreated to and the costumes for all the children and adults. The portrayal of young William Beech's mother and her period of post-partum psychosis and his night terrors following the abuse at her hand was delicately done but at a high standard and was well portrayed and very accurate. 

My mum adored the show so much that she wanted to re-watch the film and re-read the book as soon as we got home that night! We did end up watching the film the following night. Out of all the performances we have seen so far (Legally Blonde: The Musical, Cinderella: The Ballet and Sister Act) this has been her favourite. It was a close debate between Goodnight Mister Tom and Legally Blonde: The Musical but her love for Goodnight Mister Tom swayed her. Neither her nor I can wait for the next show that we see, I wonder when that will be and I wonder which show we can add to our evergrowing list next.

xxx