December 11 2009 – January 18 2010

A new stage adaptation of The Cat In The Hat, aimed at three to six year olds is to opens at the National Theatre this Christmas.

The Cat In The Hat will play from 11 December over the Christmas period and is based on the popular picture book by Dr. Seuss, which tells the tale of a cat in a red and white striped hat who pays a visit to Sally and her brother. The trio gets up to all sorts of mischief together, but then mum comes home…

The production is something of a departure for director Katie Mitchell, a regular at the National, whose work normally comprises multi-media adaptations of classics aimed firmly at adult audiences, such as the recent …Some Trace Of Her, The Seagull and Waves. Her other piece for the National this autumn is an adaptation of Ferdinand Bruckner’s Pains Of Youth.

The theatre has a history of producing theatre for young adults and family audiences, including successful productions of His Dark Materials, Coram Boy and, most recently, War Horse, which transferred to the West End where it is still playing. This year’s family offering is an adaptation of Terry Pratchett’s adventure novel Nation, suitable for ages 10 and over, which plays in the Olivier from 11 November.

The Cat In The Hat plays in the Cottesloe theatre until 18 January, before transferring to the Young Yic from 28 January to 13 March.