Goblin Market – British Youth Music Theatre

Goblin Market was performed by British Youth Music Theatre at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford.

Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩

Great works of literature provide a rich source of inspiration for British Youth Music Theatre shows. BYMT’s 2021 summer season alone presents adaptations of J. M. Barrie’s Peter Pan and Michael Morpurgo’s Why the Whales Came, as well as Christina Rossetti’s Goblin Market.

Originally produced at the Lyric Theatre Belfast and then at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2005, Goblin Market expands Rossetti’s 1862 poem into a one-hour chamber opera, faithfully reworking its story of two sisters who should beware of goblins bearing fruit. Retaining many of the poem’s original words, bookwriter and lyricist Kath Burlinson additionally draws upon Rossetti’s prose work Speaking Likenesses (1874) for source material for the new characters of the Aunt, Claire and Clara.

The cast is led by Grace Murray and Eva Pomery as twin protagonists Laura, who succumbs to the goblin merchants and consumes their fruit, and Lizzie, who resists them and ultimately saves her sister. Strong as individual performers, the pair are also a well-matched partnership, with some delightful vocal duets.

The supporting cast is no less talented. Worthy of particular note are Skye Ailun Peng who sings charmingly in the role of Jeannie, a minor character in Rossetti’s poem who is cast as a ghost in this adaptation; and Max Hayes Nolan, who contributes some great moments as the scheming head goblin.

While members of the company shine as individuals, the 26-strong, predominantly female cast also excel as an ensemble, being equally as convincing when singing a sweet lullaby as when transformed into a menacing horde of goblins. The complex vocal harmonies heard during the culminating church scene are particularly poignant.

My only slight regret is that, doubtless owing to the focus of Rossetti’s original poem on the two sisters (and even despite the addition of multiple new characters), this adaptation affords quite limited opportunities for other individuals from the evidently highly gifted company aged 11-17 to take their turn in the spotlight.

Under the direction of Gerard Jones (who is also responsible for streamlining this presentation of Goblin Market from the 75-minute original, removing some songs and dialogue) and movement director Danielle Meehan, the cast makes effective use of the full space available onstage, navigating well the central set piece of the quaint house where Laura and Lizzie reside.

Musical director Adam Gerber ably leads the young 17-piece pit orchestra, including an onstage piano adeptly played by Alice Brown, in Conor Mitchell’s delightful score—at times mysterious and haunting like the goblins, at times as lush as their forbidden fruit. The eerie sound design used to articulate the breaks between scenes is another deft touch.

Bringing to life the magic of Rossetti’s famous story while commendably negotiating its dark themes, BYMT’s production admirably transports the audience to the fairy tale realm of seductive goblins and the innocent sisters who fall under their spell.

Christopher Wiley