Spirited Away at London Coliseum

A theatrical adaptation of the 2001 Miyazaki film, Spirited Away tells the story of Chihiro, a young girl who inadvertently enters the world of spirits while travelling to a new home with her family. Her parents make pigs of themselves, first figuratively then very literally, and Chihiro has to navigate the dangerous and confusing realm of gods, witches and spectres to save them and return to the human world.

The original Spirited Away is visually and thematically complex, and capturing that unique Miyazaki essence must have been a significant creative challenge, but this production more than rises to the occasion, perfectly translating the animated film to the stage.

The puppets and other practical effects on show are nothing short of gorgeous, with each costumed creature, great and small, adding to the immense visual spectacle of the performance and facilitating some fantastic drama and physical comedy.

It’s impressive how much of the play feels rooted in the distinctive animation style of Studio Ghibli, with the puppets, effects and human actors flawlessly capturing the energy and dynamism of the original movie – it’s a minor trick, but the production even manages to replicate the unique way that hair is animated in Ghibli films.

The show also makes inventive use of the stage, with rotating stage elements, lighting tricks and forced perspective to expand the world, making for a truly immersive and engaging narrative space. This creative stagecraft also allows the spirit world to be a character in its own right, dynamic, emotive and shifting along with the cast of colourful characters that reside in it. 

Another interesting impact of adapting Spirited Away for the stage is how the medium of the theatre interacts with the story’s themes. Spirited Away is about many things, but one of its key motifs is liminality – Chihiro is between childhood and adulthood, between her old life and her new one, and between life and death in the world of the kami. The fourth wall between the stage and the audience gives this liminality an extra dimension, making the threshold tangible in a way that strengthens the core ideas at the heart of Chihiro’s journey.

Magical is the only word to describe this adaptation of Spirited Away. Any Ghibli fans owe it to themselves to watch this performance, and even people unfamiliar with Miyazaki’s work will be, well, spirited away to a fantastical world crafted with love and passion.

Umar Ali
Images: Johan Persson

Spirited Away is at London Coliseum from 30^th April until 24^th August 2024. For further information or to book visit the theatre’s website here.

Watch the trailer for Spirited Away here: