I Wish I Was a Mountain review: Once upon a time with real people

I Wish I Was a Mountain

The Ark

★★★★★

What would you wish for, Toby Thompson asks a young audience, if you were able to wish for anything you wanted? I Wish I Was a Mountain draws its inspiration from Hermann Hesse’s fairy tale, but there is plenty of resonance for the modern listener in this hybrid storytelling piece: what were the people of “once upon a time” but people, with desires and fears, just like us?

I Wish I Was a Mountain is the story of Faldum, a small town transformed by a summer fair, when a magician sets up a mirrored booth among the stalls, offering the townspeople the promise of everything they ask for. Of course, getting what you want can be dangerous, as two unassuming musicians discover, one when he disappears into his melody, the other when he is transformed into a lonely mountain.

In Thompson’s telling, however, the story is not as important as the telling, and in Thompson, young audiences find a gentle guide through the wonders of theatre.

On a set designed by Anisha Field, Thompson has created a matryoshka doll of a performance. Miniature houses beget more domestic dwellings, each of which holds key secrets of the story. Improvising on a piano as free-jazz and soul records spin on turntables, Thompson commands instant calm among the audience, remembering to offer opportunities for interaction and connection, too, while the rhythms and subtle rhyme of his reworked fairy tale create momentum at key points in the narrative.

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Produced by the Egg and Travelling Light Theatre Company, I Wish I Was a Mountain is an exquisite escape from the noise of modern life, offering life lessons that sing through the ages.

Ran at the Ark, Dublin 2, on October 14th, 15th and 16th as part of Dublin Theatre Festival. Tours to Town Hall Theatre, Galway, on Tuesday, October 18th, and Wednesday, October 19th (as part of Baboró International Arts Festival for Children); the Mall, Tuam, Co Galway, on Thursday, October 20th (also as part of Baboró); and Riverbank Arts Centre, Newbridge, Co Kildare, on Wednesday, October 26th; some performances are for schools only