Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a musical based on the 1968 film of the same name. The show tells of inventor Caractacus Potts and his 2 children, Jeremy and Jemima. He discovers that his children have developed an affection for a car in a junkyard that used to be a prize winning car and they convince their father to buy the car. Whilst he sets about restoring it to its former glory the Vulgarian’s get wind of this and plot to get the car for their own fortune leading the family right to Vulgaria and into the hands of the child catcher.

For a family show it is a relatively long one at 2 hours and 40 min and it takes a while to get into its stride with a large part of the 1st Act spent following Caractacus as he tries to raise money for the car. It is only really when the car takes flight does the story gather pace and the audience become engrossed with the story. It feels as if there are a lot of distractions within the show and a lot to cover so it is hard to develop any real substantial feelings for any of the characters, and I found myself underwhelmed by Caractacus’ and Truly Scrumptious’ developing romance.

The car itself becomes the star of the show and when the vehicle begins to take flight the effect is magical. At times the rest of the set looks a bit sparse for what is normally a magical world. The Toy Makers shop gives no idea of the scale of his work and the funfair scene looked sparse. The costumes however by Morgan Large (also the set designer) did help elevate this with a fun splash of colour and eccentricity.

The music by Richard M Sherman & Robert B Sherman succeeds unequivocally. There are upbeat song and dance numbers such as the traditional ‘Me Ol’ Bamboo,’ and the bonkers ‘The Bombie Samba,’ there are lullabies such as ‘Hushabye Mountain’ and of course musical theatre stalwarts such as ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,’ ‘Toot Sweets,’ and ‘Doll On A Music Box.’ It is the musical numbers where the cast dial the energy up a notch that really gives the show its feel good factor.

Adam Garcia took on the role as Caractacus Potts and he is at his best in numbers such as ‘Me Ol’ Bamboo’ where he is able to show off not only his vocal ability but really shine in the big dance moments. Ellie Nunn played Truly Scrumptious and with the help of an updated script and a self depreciating moments helped make her very likeable in the role. During her performance of ‘Doll on a Music Box,’ she had the entire audience rooting for their plan. Due to the nature of the script it was hard to follow and believe the developments of Caractacus and Truly’s relationship and it was hard to understand why the children took such an immediate shine to her, especially as she was reprimanding them for not being in school.

Charlie Brooks took on the gender reversed role of the Childcatcher and she was magnificent in this part. My only complaint was that we didn’t see more of her. Her physicality and her vocal choices sent shivers up my spine with a commanding presence whenever she was on stage. The role of the Baron was played by Martin Callaghan and on the night I saw it the Baroness was played by understudy Bibi Jay. Their interactions lit up the stage whenever the appeared together and their larger than life characters worked perfectly. The ensemble were hardworking and played a large variety of roles and there were fun moments when they were able to develop individual characters within numbers.

Whilst the show wasn’t quite phantasmagorical it was a pleasant evening full of nostalgic musical theatre songs and a rare chance to see a flying car on stage!

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is on at New Wimbledon Theatre until 25th May when it then continues its UK tour. You can find out more about the show and book tickets here.

If you like this review you might also like my review of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang you might also like my review of Jesus Christ Superstar, Choir of Man and 2 Strangers Carry A Cake Across New York.