With the coming of the holiday season, London's theaters are preparing to serve up the usual Christmas glitter, from Scrooge and fairy-tale pantomimes to dancing sugarplums. But for lovers of fantasy and epic children's literature, there is a richer than usual choice in the West End this season.
The vainglorious Toad, along with Mole and Rat, have returned in Alan Bennett's witty musical adaptation of "The Wind in the Willows," one of the hits of the 1990 season. It opened earlier this month at the Olivier.David Wood's rendition of Roald Dahl's best seller "The BFG" - the initials stand for Big Friendly Giant - opens Thursday at the Aldwych, following a successful 21-week tour through England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
"The Hunting of the Snark," a musically rumbustious version of Lewis Carroll's epic nonsense poem, continues at the Prince Edward. The $3.5 million production is, in the words of one reviewer, part magic lantern show, part cartoon fantasy.
Among the Christmas pantomimes, an English holiday tradition where the audience is often expected to do more than just watch, "Jack and the Beanstalk" opens Dec. 13 at the Piccadilly Theater.