productions

What happens when the Happy Endings are stolen?

An original story by Carol Ann Duffy retold as dance theatre for family.

Deep in the forest lives Jub, a magical girl with six fingers on each hand. Her job is to guard the Happy Endings to stories and fairytales. But one day an otherworldly Witch steals them, and at bedtime the stories are destroyed...

Goldilocks changed the locks on the cottage of the three bears...
Cinderella’s foot is now too big for the glass slipper…
Little Red Riding Hood is gobbled up by the wolf…
Pinocchio’s nose never stops growing, in fact, his nose grew so long that he arrived everywhere a whole day before he set off!

As the Witch disappears with the stolen Happy Endings it is up to Jub to save the night, encountering many beloved fairytale characters and woodland creatures in her quest...

Packed with spirit, adventure and glorious surprises, this fantasy family show will delight generations both old and young.

Original score composed by Murray Gold, with set design by Neil Murray, costume design by Nasir Mazhar and narrated by Joanna Lumley.

Commissioned by Sadler's Wells and co-produced by Northern Stage.

This show is about rebelling against expectations of what happy endings to fairytales should be, and with originality and irreverent humour we are offering new ambitions for Pinocchio, Cinderella, Hansel, Gretel and Snow White. This begins a beautiful revolution for the children who let wild their imagination and throw themselves into new and liberated happenings with their favourite fairytale characters.

In our most relatable family production, we are telling the truth about the bad bedtime hours with stories gone wrong - and offering new hope for children and adults looking for alternatives to the impossibly unreachable happy endings of some best known fairytales.

Liv Lorent

This production toured national from 2020-22.

Running Time: approx. 1 hour 40 minutes including 20 minute interval

Recommended age: 5+

Thank you to our funders

Main image: Luke Waddington