How to Survive a Fairy Tale

Parents and caregivers often (and often quite rightly) approach children's theater as a necessary evil to be suffered. Even when working with an adaptation from a tried and true work, it's no easy task to create something that works for children of a decently broad age range and doesn't leave grown ups either bored or in need of a George Carlin cleanse immediately afterward.

But Lifeline Theatre's James E. Grote pulls it off with the charming "How to Survive a Fairytale." The play is a perfectly paced hour of four creatively re-imagined fairy tales wrapped in a cute (but not cutesy) fifth fairy tale.

Throughout, Grote uses the nostalgic convention of chime drawing attention to survival tips about creativity, tolerance, responsibility, and so on. The dialogue has a very nice balance of fun, silly language to appeal to the kids and sly references and jokes to engage the grown ups.

Especially with children's theatre, even the best script in the world is no good without a director and cast who can bring it to life in an appealing way. Shole Milos puts together a show that moves and is fun to watch, despite the relatively cramped space with which the cast has to work.

Thanks to an attractive and versatile set by Alan Donahue, creative blocking that makes use of the aisles and entrances from both backstage and through the theatre, and perfectly coordinated sound and lighting design (Anthony Ingram and Jordan Kardasz, respectively) the action never drags and the numerous scene changes become part of the fun and creativity of the story. In fact, the show runs so smoothly in all aspects that the script's Dr. Who reference is especially funny.

For a children's show, the cast has pretty heavy demands placed on it. Four of the five main cast members have to contribute to the efforts to keep the show moving while negotiating quick and complicated-looking costume changes (it's hard to overestimate the contribution of Jana Anderson's designs, particularly for the Frog Prince!), props, and set dressing. Heather Currie, Derek Czaplewski, Amanda Link, and Jacquis Neal are up to the task and attack their multiple roles with gusto.

As Jack, the narrator whose parents never let him read fairy tales because their own had not turned out as they'd hoped, Nathaniel Niemi also does a really nice job. He's very convincingly childlike without sounding at all saccharine or condescending, and his impressive shifts between narration and action are crucial to the show's terrific pace.

Perhaps the highest praise I can offer of the show is that it kept the kids engaged. And there were lots of them, ranging from about 4 to 10 (the show is recommended for kids 5 and up, and children under 2 are not permitted).

I didn't witness a single meltdown in the full theater. The scary bits have enough humor in them that they didn't seem to alarm the little ones, but the show has enough edge to keep the interest of the older ones.