Theatre

Review | The Lion, The Witch and The Beaver* – sorry, Wardrobe

Words by Hollie Wells.

The Manc - 7th December 2025

What an enchanting evening at The Lowry as we were transported to Narnia to review the live stage adaptation of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe in Media City as the production began its festive run in Greater Manchester.

As we entered the playing space, the atmosphere was set with a pianist on stage, slowly drowning out the noise of the outside world and settling the audience in for a night of magic.

Launching ‘Act One’ with a touching rendition of the British wartime classic, ‘We’ll Meet Again’ by Vera Lynne, we meet the large ensemble, multi-instrumentalist cast.

This talented ensemble pivots around multiple roles throughout the performance, creating a shape-shifting atmosphere with some impressive seamless transitions, allowing us to “open our minds” and be absorbed into the mythical world of Narnia alongside The Pevensies.

Sweetly played by Joanna Adaran, Jesse Dunbar, Kudzai Mangombe and Bunmi Osadolor, they excel in exploring sibling dynamics such as rivalry, trust, but most of all, loyalty and love.

The most mind-blowing element of this performance, however, was the production; it truly is the unsung hero of the entire show, so we’ll so the singing on their behalf.

Set and costume (designed by Tom Paris), lighting (done by Jack Knowles), puppetry design and direction (by Max Humphries and Toby Olie), sound design (credit to Tom Marshall) and hair, make-up and wig designer (Susanna Perez).

All this carefully curated talent helped create a world where we had no choice but to believe in magic.

For us as an audience, it made things so much easier to immerse and delight in the world of C.S. Lewis’ imagination, as it is so wonderfully presented in front of us.

This was elevated once again by levitation and disappearing acts – the scene was set on the
boards and in the air.

Huge credit goes to Gwen Hales (aerial director) and Chris Fisher (magic and illusions); it felt as if anything was possible, and we needed no convincing that we were in the presence of pure enchantment.

However, arguably the most magnificent moment of the show was the reveal of Aslan himself.
As this grand puppet prowled onto the stage, you could hear gasps echo throughout the theatre.

Manoeuvred by three puppeteers, this skilful spectacle was a credit to bringing the story to
life in live theatre. The seamless, lifelike movements of breath and king-like presence were
both majestic and a credit to the production.

Accompanied by Stanton Wright, we had no doubt that this was the true hero of Narnia.

If you want us to sum up our review of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe at The Lowry, quite simply, this show is nothing short of a marvel.

With constant playfulness and wit throughout – mainly brought to you from the broad Northern and oh-so lovable Mr Beaver (Ed Thorpe), and fellow believer in magic, ‘The Professor’ (Kraig Thornber).

It’s the lattermost that left us with a lasting thought, as he warmly reminds the audience that even when times feel dark, “the sun is always up there, we just have to look.”

The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe is running from The Lowry in Salford Quays all the way up until Sunday, 11 January 2026. Don’t miss the magic and grab your tickets HERE.

If you’re interested in finding out what else we’ve enjoyed at the theatre in Manchester recently, then look no further…

Read more:

• ‘The Karate Kid – The Musical’, inspired by the iconic 80s film, is coming to town
• Review | ‘Hopefully!’, you get lucky enough to see the spectacle that is Loyle Carner live
• Beloved play The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is returning to Manchester

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Featured Images — The Manc Group/Press shots (Brinkhoff/Moegenburg supplied via The Lowry)