With a roar from the audience, the curtain came down on the last performance of Katie and the Mona Lisa – at least for now.
The hope is that Planet Theatre and Splats can approach other theatres and take the show on tour. The production will be adjusted and improved where required, possibly slightly expanded. But only minor things as there is no doubt that audiences love the show as it is. The songs and music are a triumph, the sets ingeniously effective, the costumes beautiful, the pacing of the story brilliantly cumulative. And the cast were fantastic. The theatre was filled with laughter and applause… and a few boos and hisses for the villainous gallery guard. All the comments I’ve received have been uniformly superlative. I overheard one mother tell another : “It’s the best thing I’ve ever seen”.
So I think Katie has made some new friends, and I imagine the Mona Lisa will have a few more visitors at the Louvre this summer! I felt quite emotional after the last performance, especially when Mike Redwood, who first approached me about the project and who adapted the book, gave me a gift: the oranges used in the “Primavera” scene (in fact they are orange juggling balls), signed by the cast! I can’t yet juggle as well as Giacomo the Jester, but I’m getting pretty good at plate spinning!
Bravo everyone! Fingers crossed, this was only the beginning…
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