One of the pleasures of Toby Thompson’s solo shows is how it feels as if we have rocked up at his home rather than the theatre. To the twinkling sound of Melody Gardot’s If the Stars Were Mine, he is instantly at ease as he strolls on in vintage aviator gear for his version of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s bittersweet novella about a pilot who crashes in the desert and encounters a sunset-loving prince.
The book ruminates on the gulf between the worlds of youth and adulthood but, in a production designed with elan by Anisha Fields, the aesthetic is a particularly sophisticated blend of grown up and childlike. An art deco stand with burnished poles is studded with planet-like orbs; the floor and back wall display doodles and aeronautical-style charts; and sand is poured from a mug to make the desert. Saint-Exupéry’s famous sketch of a boa constrictor digesting its prey is taped on the set.
