Last Updated on 5 December 2025 by Colette
This post features gifted experiences
I have fond memories of settling down in front of the fire on a wintery Sunday night to watch the BBC adaption of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and whilst I devoured all the books as a child, I haven’t watched the films, nor had I seen it on stage before now. It is years since I have delved into the magic kingdom of Narnia leaving my memories of the story a little faded – fur coats, snow, Aslan, Turkish delight, the triumph of good over evil . . .
This Christmas at The Lowry, you’re invited to step through the wardrobe in the magic kingdom of Narnia where a world of wonder awaits . . .
I had been told ahead of time by friends that the stage version of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe is not a soft, fluffy play but then in fairness neither is the original story. The stage adaptation of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe is dark – both literally and metaphorically and whilst the recommendation is for children age 6+, Amy and I agreed we would suggest this performance is more suited to children age 10+ unless your child is particularly resilient as some parts are quite intense.
The scenery is minimalistic with clever use of props and lighting to draw you back in time to World War II, onto a train packed with evacuees, to the Professors house and eventually through the wardrobe and to Narnia itself. The train sequence was a stand out moment for me in terms of the use of lighting and dance to bring the train to life. I also want to mention that I really loved that the musicians are incorporated on stage as part of the performance and are not hidden in the pit, this really added to the energy and intimacy of scenes and drew me into the music far more than I perhaps normally would have been. The score added emotional depth and atmosphere without overwhelming the action, everything just felt well balanced and like it belonged if that makes sense.
The story moves quickly but touches on all the key moments – Amy commented that she felt certain things were missing or rushed for example how quickly all four children ended up in Narnia but we discussed the limitations of performing an entire book on stage in two hours with limited scenery and props – essentially you can’t include everything and the main points of the story and the feel of it are the most important things. I personally didn’t think anything important was missed out or glossed over – but perhaps my rusty memories of the details served me well in this instance!
As I mentioned at the start, this feels like quite a dark production. The wolves are quite scary with their crutch-extended limbs and their movements around stage compounded with Maugrim’s distorted voice. The Snow Queen is played brilliantly – I adored her costumes, especially the luxe feel of her voluminous fur coat. She is, quite rightly, terrifying from the moment she arrives on stage on her sleigh pulled by a pack of wolves to the moment she kills both Aslan on the stone table and Edmund with her wand. There is no softening of these scenes, she stabs her knife into Aslan and we see it visibly bloodied when she removes it again and, again after she stabs Edmund with her wand, we hear her scream “He is dead!” – there is no alluding to what she is done, it is made very clear. I loved that these moments were not shied away from as they are powerful, significant parts of the story – but I do think it is worth being aware of if you plan to take younger children to watch.
In the end of course, good triumphs over evil and those darker, more scary moments are balanced out with pockets of warmth and humour. We loved the warm and instantly likeable Beavers. Their costumes were brilliant and we especially loved the tails! Mrs Beaver reprimanding Mr Beaver and him apologising with “shame” when he had done something silly made us laugh. Santa costume along with his joyful song whilst delivering presents to the Peter, Susan and Lucy brought light relief at a moment where it felt that everything was going wrong. The powerful presence of Aslan brought hope and guidance and felt every bit as important as it ought. The combination of puppetry and live acting surprised me at first but I soon relaxed into that and found it worked incredibly well – so much so that when I mentioned the “puppet” to Amy afterwards, she didn’t actually realise what I meant at first! And, the Professor himself – I wanted him to be my friend. The way he speaks to kindly and thoughtfully to the children (in direct contrast to his house keeper) meant you always felt safe when he was on stage!
Whilst there are darker, more scary moments in the play, they serve to teach lessons of courage, sacrifice and the power of love – something we could perhaps all do with reminding of at times.
This is a visually striking and emotional production which represents all the key story details and themes faithfully – it has certainly reminded me of exactly why this story has been so loved for generations and has left me wanting to dive back into the book this Christmas. Amy and I absolutely recommend The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe for families with older children and fans of the book – Amy and I both said that the story was a part of our childhoods – for me I remember being read the story in school and watching the TV adaptation, for Amy it has been about watching the films. Either way this 70 year old story holds a place in our hearts that has been strengthened all the more by watching it played out on stage.
Book tickets for The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe at the Lowry until Sunday 11th January 2026.
You can find out more about the theatre in Manchester here:
What’s on at the theatre in Manchester this Christmas
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