First a picture book by Raymond Briggs, and a beloved TV film, The Snowman was then brought to life on stage at Birmingham Repertory Theatre in 1993. Now, more than three decades later, a refreshed version of the adaptation is this month taking flight at The Rep, with Will Tuckett both directing and choreographing it. The production might be polished and updated in places, but it still features Howard Blake’s iconic score - and, of course, a certain floppy-hatted Snowman, who will be ‘walking in the air’! Will chatted to What’s On about the show’s eagerly anticipated return…

The timeless story of a young boy whose Snowman comes to life on Christmas Eve has been a hit since 1978, when Raymond Briggs’ wordless picture book was first published. In 1982, the charming story was adapted into an animated television film, then found new life in 1993 as a theatrical adaptation. The show has been a firm family favourite ever since.

This year sees the Birmingham Repertory Theatre producing a brand-new version of the play, directed and choreographed by Will Tuckett. The production will be updated in places but honour the legacy of the previous stage show, retaining Howard Blake’s iconic music and taking inspiration from Raymond Briggs’ original illustrations.

“Howard’s music is built into the DNA of the country,” Will told What’s On. “It’s international, and part of our heritage. Growing up, the Raymond Briggs book was given to me for Christmas. It was in my stocking when I was little, when it had just come out. I then remember us all gathering around the telly to watch Channel Four when it was first screened - it was a real event.

“I was lucky to be able to go into Random House with the team and look at the original artwork - it’s heartbreakingly beautiful. The structure of the show is pretty much exactly the same. I’ve made a couple of little changes in act two, but they’re small. There was a Jack Frost character - who was added in quite late, actually - and I’ve turned that into a pair of little naughty siblings. I’ve put a little bit more flying into that second act - because you’ve got to! If you’ve got the chance, you’ve got to get people up in the air.”

The new production is of course a team effort. Designer Anna Fleischle has been exploring those original illustrations, to bring the play’s design as close as possible to Briggs’ drawings. The Snowman costume, meanwhile, will be made by Tahra Zahar, who recently designed the bears in hit West Ender Paddington: The Musical.

“Theatre has changed hugely in 33 years,” says Will. “It’s a very different landscape in terms of audience expectations now, so we’ve also got a lot of projection in the show. I’m very excited about that. Nina Dunn is the projection designer, and we’ve been looking particularly at the Walking In The Air sequence - we’re actually able to make a three-dimensionally projected world. When I say that, it means that if perspectives are shifting, it’s all happening in a three-dimensional way, so whilst the projection itself isn’t 3D, it gives you a sense of depth and movement. You couldn’t really use projection [like this] 30-odd years ago, and that’s a very exciting thing. Nina has been working with her brilliant animator, Simran, who’s from Birmingham. They’ve been really breaking down how we make that sequence work.”

While elements of the design are being updated - thanks to decades of technical advancement since the first staging - Snowman fans will be pleased to hear the return of Howard Blake’s lyrical music, which underscored both the animated film and the previous play.

“The music isn’t going to change, but there were a lot of samples that were used last time. Thirty years ago, if you had a little Casio organ, you were feeling quite chuffed… My big hope is that it will sound even more like what Howard had in his head when he wrote it.”

The plan to stage a refreshed version of The Snowman was in discussion for a while, but it’s only now that Will feels it’s the right time for The Rep to present a new production at such a scale.

“I don’t think it will look complicated, but if you check under the bonnet of the show, it’s actually really complicated! With Joe [Murphy] being the new artistic director - he’s just had such a huge hit with Sweeney Todd - it feels like it’s a different foot forward for The Rep.”

It’s not the first time that Will has choreographed work for The Rep’s expansive stage - he previously created a piece for Birmingham Royal Ballet, which was the first show to open at the theatre after the Covid lockdowns.

“The greatest thing about The Rep is that there’s no seat with a bad view; everybody gets a perfect view of the stage. You know when you put a piece of clothing on, and it doesn’t look big on you, but it doesn’t feel restricting? I think the stage feels like that. You’ve got room to move, but it really holds you, and it holds a production, and that’s lovely.”

The stage is spacious enough to make room for the spectacular flying sequences which have endured in the memories of audiences of all ages for decades. In aiming to retain those magic moments, Will is keen to create a production which is not solely aimed at young children.

“The version that I want to make is determinately a family show. You could go as an adult and have just as good a time if you haven’t got kids with you. You can hit that cross-generational bracket - there’s a collective feeling which the show really captures… There’s a belief that [a play] has to be bright and fast in order to get kids’ attention, but I don’t entirely subscribe to that. If you can suspend disbelief and create emotional situations which have honesty in them, I think young people will go with you.

“You do need to try and make things funny, though. When you’re younger, nostalgia doesn’t mean anything, because you’re living it all for the first time. You have to be really open and really honest - and really brutal. So if something’s not working, you cut it!”

With the excitement of a new Snowman on the horizon, Will has not lost sight of the main aim of the production: to bring to life Raymond Briggs’ beloved characters, and to maintain a theatrical tradition which has brought Christmas cheer to audiences for over 30 years.

“I’ve got a specific task to do. I’ve got to tell this story, and it has to be emotional, funny and engaging. It has to work if I’m six, and it has to work if I’m 76, and all the way through. I want it to be something that people feel they could go back and see again, because of how it made them feel. There’s lots to see; you never get bored of a scene - it’s an advent calendar of a show. You’re opening little doors and going ‘Ooh, look what I’ve got now!’”

The Snowman runs at Birmingham Rep from Tuesday 20 October to Sunday 1 November.

By Jessica Clixby