✕ ✕
Turning tips into memories
Login
Signup

You have reached the limit of free articles.


To enjoy unlimited access to Culture Whisper sign up for FREE.
Find out more about Culture Whisper

Please fix the following input errors:

  • dummy

Each week, we send newsletters and communication featuring articles, our latest tickets invitations, and exclusive offers.

Occasional information about discounts, special offers and promotions.


OR
LOG IN

OR
  • LOG IN WITH FACEBOOK

Thanks for signing up to Culture Whisper.
Please check your inbox for a confirmation email and click the link to verify your account.



EXPLORE CULTURE WHISPER
✕ ✕
Turning tips into memories
Login
Signup

Please fix the following input errors:

  • dummy
Forgot your username or password?
Don't have an account? Sign Up

OR
  • LOG IN WITH FACEBOOK

If you click «Log in with Facebook» and are not a Culture Whisper user, you agree to our Terms & Conditions and to our Privacy Policy, which includes our Cookie Use

Support Us Login
  • Home
  • Going Out
    • Things to do
    • Food & Drink
    • Theatre
    • Visual Arts
    • Cinema
    • Kids
    • Festival
    • Gigs
    • Dance
    • Classical Music
    • Opera
    • Immersive
    • Talks
  • Staying In
    • TV
    • Books
    • Cook
    • Podcast
    • Design
    • Netflix
  • Life & Style
    • Beauty
    • Fashion
    • Gifting
    • Wellbeing
    • Lifestyle
    • Shopping
    • Jewellery
  • Explore
  • Shopping
  • CW SHOPS
  • Support Us
  • Get Started
  • Tickets
  • CW SHOPS
Get the Best of London Life, Culture and Style
By entering my email I agree to the CultureWhisper Privacy Policy (we won`t share data & you can unsubscribe anytime).
Theatre

The Iron Man review, Unicorn Theatre ★★★★★

24 Jan 17 – 05 Mar 17, Show times vary

This charming play about a once-feared Iron Man who saves the world and helps humanity find peace comes to the Unicorn Theatre this half term

By CW Contributor on 3/2/2017

1 CW reader is interested
The Iron Man poster via Unicorn Theatre
The Iron Man poster via Unicorn Theatre
The Iron Man review, Unicorn Theatre 4 The Iron Man review, Unicorn Theatre Kareema Al-Adhami
The Iron Man review, Unicorn Theatre Culture Whisper says: ★★★★★


No, this play does not star Robert Downey Jr. as Marvel's superhero. On at the Unicorn Theatre this February (and running through February half term) is an adaptation of Ted Hughes' The Iron Man.


This 1968 science-fiction novel features the sudden arrival of a giant machine-eating metal-man who befriends a little boy and ultimately saves humanity from a "Space-Bat-Angel-Dragon" who wants to devour the world. Director and designer Matthew Robins combines a mixture of live animation, puppetry, and paper silhouettes for charming, family-friendly production.


After eating the local farmer's machinery, the Iron Man is buried in a deep hole below the earth to prevent him from further destruction. When he manages to escape, a concerned child suggests that the community, instead of killing the Iron Man, send him to live in a junk-yard utopia where he'll no longer be of concern.



All seems swell. That is until massive dark creature crashes heavily onto Earth and demands to be provided with food. In order to save mankind, the Iron Man challenges the monster to a contest of strength. He ultimately wins the battle and, as a result, the monster (who is actually quite peaceful at heart) is forced to sing to the people of Earth every night.


The clever set design is the star of the show. The stage opens with a cardboard robot giant with bulb eyes, who soon shrinks to a medium and then little version of himself. As the story progresses, the protagonist switches back and forth between these three sizes. Nima Taleghani’s narration starts off slow and begins catching momentum throughout. In the meanwhile, the various versions of the Iron Man are directed around the stage by puppeteers in black.


Although the puppeteers are distracting at times, the lo-fi production makes for a pleasant diversion from our increasingly high-tech lives. The back-to-basics method of storytelling makes for an enchanting theatrical production of a once-feared iron giant who helps an impulsively violent, egotistic civilization find peace. A lovely lesson for the modern age.


Recommended for ages 4-8


What The Iron Man review, Unicorn Theatre
Where The Unicorn Theatre, 147 Tooley St, London, SE1 2HZ | MAP
Nearest tube London Bridge (underground)
When 24 Jan 17 – 05 Mar 17, Show times vary
Price £8 - £18
Website Click here to book tickets via Unicorn Theatre



Most popular

Things to do in London this weekend: 24th - 26th June
Things to do in London this weekend: 24th - 26th June
London Theatre Guide: best plays on now in London (Photograph: Peter Lewicki)
London Theatre Guide: best plays on now in London, 2022
London's loveliest indoor swimming pools
London swimming pools you can visit without membership

  • LONDON FASHION EXHIBITIONS

    A stylish guide to the fashion exhibitions happening now in London

    LONDON’S MOST ROMANTIC SPOTS

    Culture Whisper's most romantic places in London this winter 2017

    BEST FILMS OF 2017

    The films you’re going to be watching this year

    LONDON’S ALTERNATIVE CULTURE

    Talks, tours, and exhibitions. Discover the wealth of alternative culture that London has to offer

Sign up to CW’s newsletter
By entering my email I agree to the CultureWhisper Privacy Policy (we won`t share data & you can unsubscribe anytime).

We recommend nearby

  • The Coal Shed

    At The Coal Shed there’s something for everyone, from weighty, mouth-watering steaks to dainty macarons. Simply take a seat amid shelves stacked high with wine bottles, and enjoy aromas from the kitchen as your meal is cooked and grilled over a natural fire.

    Read more...
    Book Map
1

Theatre

Kids

Unicorn Theatre

The Iron Man

You might like

  • Become a vet at London Zoo February half term

    Become a vet, London Zoo

  • Fantastic Mr Fox, Lyric Hammersmith

    Fantastic Mr Fox, Lyric Hammersmith Theatre

  • Tove Jansson, The Groke from 'Moomin Papa at Sea', 1965 Southbank Centre Nordic Matters Scandi Festival London

    Nordic Matters, Southbank Centre

  • Puppet Theatre Barge: The Flight of Babushka Baboon March 2017

    The Flight of Babuscha Baboon, Puppet Theatre Barge



  • The Culture Whisper team
  • Support Us
  • Tickets
  • Contact us
  • Press
  • FAQ
  • Privacy
  • Terms and conditions
  • Cookies
  • Discover
  • Venues
  • Restaurants
  • Stations
  • Boroughs
Sign up to CW’s newsletter
By entering my email I agree to the CultureWhisper Privacy Policy (we won`t share data & you can unsubscribe anytime).
×