Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh

Two Tales for the price of one as the brilliant Christmas show specialist Stuart Paterson weaves the story of the princess and the frog into the dream world of the Sleeping Beauty. In doing so, he creates a great rites-of-passage allegory, taking us through the adolescent minefield of temptation, deception and false appearances, finally reaching a rich and rewarding resolution.
As one character says: “The love that wakes between boy and girl, that is the true sleeping beauty.” The awakening is as affecting as it is hard won. With a creepily oppressive design by Greg Smith, and a beautifully delicate score by Savourna Stevenson, Hugh Hodgart’s production demands to be seen by every adult – with or without a child in tow….