Julia Donaldson is the multi award-winning author of some of the world’s best loved children’s books, most notably the modern classic The Gruffalo which has sold over 13 million copies worldwide.
Many of her books have made the journey from page to stage, and now Tabby McTat has joined them in a new adaptation from Freckle Productions, the team behind Stick Man, Tiddler and other Terrific Tales and Zog.
Ahead of its performances at Oxford Playhouse, what was Julia’s inspiration for Tabby McTat?
“I’ve always been a cat lover, and I remember sitting on a train and thinking of cat ideas,” she says.
“I started with the fact that cats have owners, and who might that be? Could it be a burglar or a policeman?
“And as I’ve been a busker myself, I thought Tabby could be a busker’s cat, and that the two of them could be separated in some way. So that part of the story came to me during that train journey.
“I knew that Tabby and Fred the busker would eventually come back together again, but I didn’t know how, and it was actually my husband Malcolm’s idea. He said to me, ‘it would be nice if it went down to the next generation,’ – so that bit of the story came from him.
“In a way, Tabby McTat is my most complex picture book, because instead of it simply being about someone who has an aspiration, or somebody who faces difficulties but gets what they want in the end, it’s about being torn.
“To begin with, Tabby just wants to get back to Fred the busker, who he’s been separated from. Then he falls in love and has a family, but he still thinks about Fred and is torn between the two – until that gets resolved by the next generation.”
She loved busking then? “Yes. I started busking with a friend when I was a student in Paris – and then Malcolm, my now husband, came to join us and extended our repertoire incredibly, because we could hardly play anything before him!
“It was a brilliant way to have a holiday, because every time Malcolm and I went away, we would just buy our flights and then pay for all our accommodation and food by busking.”
“But Tabby McTat isn’t really a fable, it’s more of a story and much more realistic in a way – I think you need animals to represent the qualities.
“It would be far more boring for the reader or listener, if Mouse in The Gruffalo was just a small but clever person, or The Gruffalo itself was a big, scary but rather stupid person. Or in The Snail and the Whale, if the Whale was just a big person and the snail a little person –
So why is storytelling so important to her? “It’s something I think about a lot because in life, not everything does have a happy ending – but I think storytelling is probably very important because to grow up with stories helps you have aspirations, even if life doesn’t turn out like that.
“Even as grown-ups, we know that there is a lot of sadness in life, but I think if we didn’t have those stories, aspirations and a sense of what’s ideal, life would be much harder to live.”
What’s it like for you when people turn your books into stage performances? “For me, it’s like an extension of working with an illustrator. Handing it over to a theatre company or film company you know it’s going to change, but you have to let it go.
“I’m invariably impressed by the energy and talent of the cast. The stage productions always include songs and although I’m occasionally a bit critical (being a songwriter myself) I especially enjoyed the catchy numbers in Tabby McTat.”
“And if it’s a good show, parents love to see that their children – even very young ones – can just be transfixed by it.”
Your books are read around the world, and have been adapted many times, what do you think is the appeal?
Tabby McTat opens at Oxford Playhouse today and runs until Sunday. oxford playhouse.com or 01865 305305.
