We round up the reviews for the European premiere of the stage adaptation of Hayao Miyazak’s film.
The Guardian: **** “There are many other meals in this lavishly imaginative surtitled adaptation from Japan, which is meticulous in its visual detail and choreography, delightful in its puppetry, both meditative and whirling in its speed, and packed full of comedy and adventure. But it does come to feel like a gargantuan meal with too many dishes, all of them delicious, but a surfeit nonetheless.”
London Theatre.co.uk: **** “But, beyond all the busy ideas and invention, the production also leaves breathing space for quieter scenes to play out. A sequence set in a train carriage, as the light falls, is utterly exquisite: a sort of living painting. It’s magical theatre.”
The Independent: ***** “Hayao Miyazaki’s inimitable animation is brought to the stage in a crowd-pleasing, visually ambitious reimagining.”
Time Out: *** “But then the show comes into its own when there is a full change of scene for the iconic train ride sequence – Chihiro and No-Face sat next to each other in an unnatural carriage, surrounded by hazy beings, with Satoshi Kuriyama’s ravishing sunrise projections pulsing in the background and Joe Hisaishi’s classic score surging magnificently. It’s beautiful, both as a homage to the film’s most iconic scene, but also something more than that – it has a greater, more visceral, more emotional impact for being right there in front of us. It has a punchy simplicity and powerful stillness (we’re basically just looking at two characters sitting down) that much of the rest of the show lacks.”
The Arts Desk: ***** “Spirited Away is in every sense a big show. The sets fill one of the largest stages in London, the cast of each evening is multitudinous (and there are rotations for the leads) and the demands it makes on its audience to deal with Miyazaki’s approach to storytelling are also considerable. Fortunately, with the original Tokyo cast, Japanese is the spoken language – if anyone has seen the dubbed Ghibli films, you’ll know how that jars – so you’re also reading surtitles for three hours.”
Theatre Vibe.co.uk: “I think to fully engage emotionally with this block buster of a production it helps to have seen the animation and be rooting for Chihiro and Haku. Full credit to John Bausor for his soaring sets of ironwork stairs and balconies and the ability to make the forest look real. The sights here are the most exceptional you will see in London!”
Evening Standard: *** “Even the relentless inventiveness of Caird, Olié and their team starts to pall though as the story meanders through yet more bizarre twists and turns and the acting gets shoutier. The stage adaptation runs more than 180 minutes to the film’s 125. So if you ask me what Spirited Away is really about, I’d say it’s about an hour too long.”
Broadway World: **** “The immersive realism typical of Studio Ghibli’s style comes out in full force here. Where the RSC’s Totoro was relatively toned down and bubbly, the labyrinthine city of Spirited Away turns into an intricate web of layers, ladders, and moving walls that allow the characters to appear and disappear seamlessly. Dancing flowers, wicked rulers, dangerous companions all balance out vivid sociopolitical commentary with oneiric and delightfully surreal imagery.”
The Telegraph: *** “This adaptation of the much-loved 2001 Studio Ghibli film doesn’t quite have its magic, but the stunning costumes go some way to compensate.”
The Reviews Hub: **** “A legendary journey, Spirited Away honours the cinematic masterpiece by traversing the root of Japan’s theatrical legacy and influence with spectacular puppetry, dance, and Joe Hisaishi’s awe-inspiring musical score: one of (if not the) production’s finest assets. Spirited Away is most potently tasteful when capturing the poetry and symphonic soul of the story with a limitless revering spectacle.”
Variety.com: “But for all the flair of the vast design team delivering “wow” moments, for much of the three-hour show — 45 minutes longer than the film plus intermission — it feels closer to the doggedly literal, copycat nature of the former.”
WhatsOnStage: **** “Everything and everyone pull together to make the entire production into a very loving tribute to a deservedly acclaimed film. It’s captivating.”
Lou Reviews: ***** “Impressive puppets by Toby Olié, lighting by Jiro Katsushiba and sound by Koichi Yamamoto brings this weird world to life. Visually stunning and an emotional slow-boiler, this could be a contender for my show of the year so far.”
The Stage: *** “Stage version of the Oscar-winning Studio Ghibli film falls short of enchantment.”
The Upcoming: ***** “Magical is the only word to describe this adaptation of Spirited Away. Any Ghibli fans owe it to themselves to watch this performance, and even people unfamiliar with Miyazaki’s work will be, well, spirited away to a fantastical world crafted with love and passion.”
Spirited Away continues to play at the London Coliseum until the 24th August 2024. You can also book tickets via London Theatre Direct or London Box Office.