Birmingham Hippodrome’s festive offering this year goes beyond classical ballet and the legendary Panto next door, with a brand new musical aimed at a younger audience. Children aged 3+ are invited (with their grown ups) to a wintery world, where music and festive cheer ward off the antics of a certain mischievous monster - The Jingleclaw!

In a snowy mountain village lives Astrid (Isabella Gervais) who loves to make a proper racket on her drum kit - even though it keeps getting her in trouble with Ms Whimsy, the school band leader (Sue Appleby). Playing in the band is a serious business - the Shnootnoot Festival is fast approaching, and music is the only thing that keeps the Jingleclaw at bay. She’s a naughty, stinky, decidedly Brummie-sounding monster, played by one-time SIX queen, Alexia McIntosh. 

Astrid is sure the Jingleclaw is made up, but her Dad, the Mayor (Mpilo May) convinces her otherwise. When the band’s violinist Jacob (Miya Alexandra) gets gobbled up into the Jingleclaw’s belly, it’s up to Astrid to save the day - with help from her friend, the Moon (Alex Cardall).

The production marks the Hippodrome’s first in-house production in their New Musical Theatre scheme, and takes pride of place as ‘The perfect first musical’. The book is written by Robyn Grant, and music by Tim Gilvin, with age-appropriate naughtiness and silliness which is sure to delight kids who like a giggle at something gross.

There are times when the plot gets a little bit complex - it is a proper musical after all, with song lyrics advancing the story. Being many of the children in the audience’s first experience of a musical, it’s quite a big concept to wrap your head around. However, the spectacular visuals and engaging performances had eyes glued to the stage from start to finish.

The visual design is particularly captivating. The set and costume by Charlotte Henry is a harmonious mish-mash - from Astrid’s tartan shorts and Ms Whimsy’s crotchet-chic outfit, to the Moon’s golden dressing gown. Then there’s the glorious orange, fuzzy Jingleclaw herself, with a troupe of purple bats puppeted by the company, and designed by Mikayla Teodoro.

Impressively, for a play all about playing music with wild abandon, the lighting and sound were never too much, thanks to carefully balanced lighting design from Sean Gleason and music production by Joe and Nikki Davison. All the songs are available to hear on the Hippodrome’s website, so young ears can be familiarised with them before the show. 

The production is full of other little touches to introduce younger audiences to their first musical experience. There are programme notes explaining different theatrical roles (“Discover all the different jobs they do, and see if one day… it could be you!”) and the audience’s grown ups gently led the way, applauding after each musical number. It’s fair to say that The Jingleclaw is a step towards nurturing the theatre’s patrons and performers for years to come.

Four Stars

The Jingleclaw was reviewed on Friday 20 December by Jessica Clixby at Birmingham Hippodrome, where it shows until Saturday 4 January