I had the pleasure of seeing the Children’s Theatre of Charlotte’s production of Hansel and Gretel this past weekend at the Wells Fargo Playhouse at ImaginOn with my two older daughters (ages 10 and 7). It’s a one-act play that moves quickly and does a good job holding the attention of children. 
The set and costumes are simple yet effective. The play uses a narration style that mixes a modern family discussion with the telling of the traditional fairy tale with a unique twist at the end. The most suspenseful parts of the story are accompanied by physical/slapstick humor that breaks the suspense and gets the audience laughing.
Here’s CTC’s summary:
In this clever adaptation, a family gathers around the dinner table and Mother tells her children the story of Hansel & Gretel. As the familiar story unfolds — two hungry children lost in the forest searching for their parents and facing a wicked witch — the family embraces their roles in this play within a play with a “happily ever after” ending.
My seven-year-old said, “It was suspenseful, but not scary.” My ten-year-old wrote her own review (see next paragraph below). My daughters really enjoyed the show and discussed it quite a bit afterwards, which let me know they were engaged for the entire performance.
The recommended age-group for the show is seven and up, but from my quick visual survey, there were plenty of children in the five and up category there as well, and they seemed to do fine. The running time for the play was approximately one hour.
The show runs from October 26-November 10 with various showtimes. Click here for showtime information and to purchase tickets.
Review by Amy Budzichowski, age 10:
The play Hansel and Gretel was very funny. It is different from the original tale, but I think that is to make it more kid-friendly. Little kids who are easily scared might have a hard time – so just remember that when bringing siblings! The play also gives Hansel and Gretel a modern “teen” attitude which adds to the humor. Hansel and Gretel overall was really funny – my little sister and I loved it!
