CMU School of Drama


Monday, April 03, 2023

My Neighbour Totoro triumphs at Olivier awards

Olivier awards | The Guardian: My Neighbour Totoro, the inventive stage production of Studio Ghibli’s much-loved animated film, has triumphed at this year’s Olivier awards. The show, which received nine nominations, won in six categories at the ceremony on Sunday.

2 comments:

Jessica Williams said...

This is so much fun. I grew up watching Studio Ghibli movies. I have a very distinct memory of sitting at home watching My Neighbour Totoro during a heat wave where it was over 100 degrees outside. My parents had gotten me a DVD box set of My Neighbour Totoro, Kiki the Witch, Ponyo, and Castle in the Sky. I loved them all but My Neighbour Totoro always had a much more firm and constant place in my heart. So seeing such an integral part of my childhood not only being produced in such a high caliber theater is so heartwarming and exciting. Just seeing pictures of the production filled me with such nostalgia and reminded me how much I miss my childhood home. While I do not love the fact that very few truly original scripts are being produced nowadays I can’t help but be charmed by this production.

Selina Wang said...

I have mentioned this several times before in the comment sections for other articles, but I was really lucky to have seen the production of ‘My Neighbour Totoro’ last October in London. I remember when I was booking the tickets I didn’t really have high hopes for the production because there were barely any images out yet on the internet and I was kind of scared that my childhood movie would be ruined when a see a poorly-made Totoro in real life. Luckily, I was completely wrong and the production turned out to be one of the best shows I’ve ever seen. The set was like a jigsaw puzzle and was able to transform into so many different configurations. The puppets were next level of technicality. They looked so real yet dramatic enough that they matched the storytelling style of the show and the fairytale nature of the story itself. I have nothing but compliments for the show and I hope that one day they go on tour so more people can see Totoro come to life with their own eyes!