Blippi - The Wonderful World Tour
A new stage production starring the well known cartoon character Blippi takes to London’s Harold Pinter Theatre! Advertised as his Wonderful World Tour, this ‘new musical party’ was more weak than wonderful.
Seeming to prioritise silliness over storylines, there was no real narrative to the piece. Not only was this generally a shame because it’s what people expected when booking their seats, but also because there was no reason for it to be so incoherent. The official website states you will ‘dance, sing, and learn with Blippi’, but in reality we sit and watch Blippi dance, sing, and throw in a fact or 2 about dinosaurs.
Highlighting that there will be a ‘special guest’ called Meekah suggests this might add some new excitement to the group, however she is incredibly underutilised and only appears at the very start and end of the hour’s performance. The auditorium was mostly unoccupied which is not typically something to judge a production on, as ticket sales can be impacted by a number of factors, however the energy of the whole show heavily relied on participatory elements, which fell flat due to the sparse turnout.
As for the technical aspects of the show, they weren’t much better than the book or direction unfortunately. The set was particularly disappointing and unimaginative, especially for a West End platform, and had no relevance to the show making the whole experience feel disjointed. The lights, while fun, were very basic - even for a children's show. They failed to add any real pizzazz or spectacle, which was a letdown given the potential of the venue.
Although many shows declare they are aimed at very young children, there is often an effort made to include grown ups or older siblings in the fun too, however this was not the case at Blippi’s Wonderful World Tour. It was disheartening to see that the characters differed from the TV clips online. An unnamed ensemble contributed to a disconnected and unfamiliar atmosphere, which didn't resonate well with the audience.
While the cast performed their roles well, they appeared slightly awkward on stage, almost as if they knew they were dancing on a sinking ship. For the size of the Blippi franchise, one would expect a higher budget or more impressive investment in design elements, but the low-quality costumes and poorly thought-out props gave the impression that they were added in without much consideration.
Overall, it was not for lack of talent or trying, but Blippi missed the mark on creating a memorable family day out, leaving much to be desired in terms of production quality and engagement.
This show was reviewed on the 17th July 2024 at the Harold Pinter Theatre where it runs until the 7th September 2024. Tickets available here: Blippi The Wonderful World (blippithewonderfulworldtour.com)
Review written by Katie Anna McConnell
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