Puppet show is an incredibly misleading way to describe the spectacle that is Dragons and Mythical Beasts. This is child’s story-book brought to life, a journey into fantasy for young minds, created through theatrical magic.
The show introduces us to Dave The Hero (played by the talented Ben Galpin). Dave’s father was trained the heroes of legend. Dave however, is not the sort of chap who likes to hurt magical beasties. Dave dreams of encountering legendary beasts using them to complete a heroes quest but fears he doesn’t have the muscles or the ability to hurt these majestic magical creatures.
Luckily, there’s an audience full of children keen to help Dave with his various tasks and of course, meet the incredible creatures up on stage. Each puppet is superbly performed and cleverly constructed. It would have been easy for the production team to simply go big and make some sort of spectacle of each creature; instead they’ve gone for attention to detail and world building. That said, some of the Mythical Beasts are very big, and some of them enchantingly small.
George The Wyvern, for example, is a small enough to be cute and adorable. But we see unicorns, faeries and other creatures from the realms of fantasy. Notably here is the world building. We don’t just get a gryphon, we get one that makes sense in the modern world. Even the titular dragon has been designed in a way that gives us a glimpse into a broader world.
Dragons & Mythical Beasts is a show for the young and young at heart. Adults will enjoy the skilled puppetry and impressive design, and children will be enchanted as they lose themselves in pure fantasy for an hour. Dragons and Mythical Beasts in a wonder, and well worth taking your tiny adventurers to.
