Review: The Magic Box, big fun show, sheer entertainment and escapism through the magic of Disney

“If you can dream it, you can do it,” is a famous quote by Walt Disney and Disney’s The Magic Box is about conjuring up the wonderful world of Disney in an epic scale staging. The Magic Box is a compendium of excerpts from 75 songs from Disney films. It is a 90 minute razzle dazzle ride with performance, dance, singing, animation, puppets and opulent production design.

The first version of Magic Box was presented in January 2024 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The English language world premiere is happening in South Africa, with an exceptional all-South African cast. This staging is a partnership between Showtime SA and international producers. It is remarkable that South Africa is the place, where this complex production is launching. The detail in scenography, puppetry, and illusion is mind blowing and it has all come together in South Africa.

The storyline follows protagonist Mara (Ashley Scott). She is a young adult who is lured from the audience, where she is sitting, by the glow of a miniature magic box on the stage. There are six scenes which unfold: The Animation Studio (as in Walt Disney), the Storytown, The Sea, The Island, The Underworld and The Skies. Each scene is signposted like a movie so we know what to expect and can follow the trail. The production is 90 minutes and could perhaps be trimmed to accommodate children and their attention span. However, the story is secondary to this production which is about celebrating and paying homage to the Disney oeuvre which continues to enthral audiences of all ages.

I loved the mash-up of human operated old’ school puppets and the intersection with high tech projection visuals. I also loved the shadow puppets and the “hand-painted” scenery which is a nod to early scenic design in Disney films and very much a tribute to the craft of making Disney films. The animation drawings in The Animation Studio scene, nails the creativity of Walt Disney in dreaming and visioning his creations and translating them to animation on film. Those were the days before AI and technology, when each movement was a drawing- done by hand. Drawings were made on see through celluloid sheets and then positioned on hand painted/drawn backgrounds.

There is a sense of playing in this production with scale: The tiny Magic Box grows and becomes huge. Mara is elevated high above us and then is suddenly on the stage. This is not a movie. It’s a theatrical production and there are audible gasps from the audience as the magic manifests on stage.

The young cast is excellent- with the leads and ensemble working in synch. One can feel their joy and enthusiasm. There are ten graduates from Cape Town’s LAMTA and four from the Waterfront Theatre School. I have watched their work from their student days and now seeing them in The Disney Box is testament to their talent and hard work – and to their superb teachers.

I would describe The Magic Box as a delicious trifle pudding – a delicious concoction of layers of Disney characters – set to a wondrous Disney score. The soundtrack was recorded live with an orchestra in Buenos Aires, March 2024. The Magic Box is a big fun show –sheer entertainment and escapism through the magic of Disney.

✳ Featured image – Ashley Scott in Disney’s Magic Box, on in Cape Town, at Artscape, October 9 to November 10, 2024 and then in Johannesburg at Montecasino’s Teatro, November 22, 2024 to January 5, 2025. Pic supplied.