The latest show at Regent Park’s Open Air Theatre takes aim at the man behind the myth of Robin Hood – to reveal they were no man at all. Writer Carl Grose dispenses with the stereotypes in favour of an inventive retelling of the tale of everyone’s favourite outlaw.
In a version of events spiritually in tune with Joni Mitchell’s ‘Big Yellow Taxi’, the dastardly sheriff Baldwin (Alex Mugnaioni) is going to pave paradise and turn the villagers’ beloved forest into a road. But someone who’s pretty handy with a bow and arrow and hides their face under a green hood keeps getting in the way…
Our route into solving the mystery identity of this person is Woodnut (Dumile Lindiwe Sibana), who escapes into the forest after her mother is killed and her father is sentenced to death for not paying his taxes. She persuades the people she meets there to help mount a rescue mission. Meanwhile, back at the palace, Baldwin’s wife Marian (Ellen Robertson) ducks out and – lo and behold – the ‘Hood’ appears to help the group.
Packed with songs, slapstick and some great arrow-related practical effects courtesy of illusion designer John Bulleid, director Melly Still’s production has an irrepressible sense of fun. A diverse cast of actors helps to spin a tired tale on its head, as Grose chucks myth into the air and uses it to lightly poke fun at gender stereotypes, greed, entitlement and saviour complexes.
If anything, the show tries to do too much. A thread about the power of storytelling gets tangled up in a plotline about forest spirits, while the switch between broad brushstroke humour and earnestness can be a bit clunky. It’s also not clear who a recurring sight gag – which sees earlier screen versions of Robin Hood unwantedly turning up – is aimed at. A Michael Praed lookalike feels like a fairly obscure reference for a family-friendly show in 2023, even if it sets up a funny line about Irish band Clannad.