Tom Sawyer: an engaging and uplifting performance

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Written by Mark Twain; adapted by Mike Hudson
Auckland Theatre Company
Selwyn College Theatre
Until April 28

Tom Sawyer is the little child in all (nearly all) of us who has dreamed of  adventure and excitement, for friendships and for discovery.

Auckland Theatre Company’s new production of Tom Sawyer delivers all that as Tom and his friend Huckleberry Finn go on adventures that will see them take the first tentative steps into adulthood.

Mark Twain had not originally intended the adventures of Tom Sawyer to be a children’s tale but rather a moral and reflective tale, of a man looking back on his childhood. As he said: “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did.”

For him, the book was somewhat of a fable with moral, social and political comments. Some of those are in the play as almost throw-away lines. As Huck says “I’d rather be Robin Hood than the President.”

In this production we encounter Tom tricking his playmates into whitewashing a fence, sneaking out of his Aunt Polly's house at night to visit a graveyard, stealing his first kiss from Becky Thatcher and, with his friend Huckleberry Finn, tracking the murderous Injun Joe and his stolen gold.

Playwright Mike Hudson has written a fast-paced version of the story which captures all the feeling of the Mississippi River of the 19th century with its larger than life characters.

Director Margaret-Mary Hollins has taken a cast of two dozen, half them young children and created a work that combines fantasy and reality in an engaging and uplifting performance that delighted young and old on opening night.

Some of the performances were outstanding, particularly Tim Earl as Tom and Evan Fennamore as Huck, who gave the characters  energy and vitality as well as a real sense of personality.

Gaby Solomona as Aunt Polly gave a thoughtful performance as did Ellen Ranum as Becky Thatcher.

But it was moments when the stage was filled with the adults and children singing and dancing that the play took on a remarkable liveliness and spontaneity, providing a real sense of community.

The clever set by Daniel Williams, the well-designed costumes by Sarah Burren and the spectacular lighting by Jane Hakaraia all added to the pleasure of the event.

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