Epilogue: Nostalgic Narnians in Fantasy Theatre
摘要
Much like fantasy theatre will continue to develop, a study of its aesthetics can never really end. However, this chapter attempts to both summarise the main findings of the study and to offer an educated theorisation on how these aesthetics reflect current cultural crises and power relations. To do so, I examine the latest revival of a The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2025), through which I both point out the persistent elements of fantasy—increased narrativisation, visibilisation of theatrical processes, and heightened immersion—and observe how this specific play reflects its cultural context, mainly British nostalgia and renegotiation of the British identity. The chapter concludes with an overview of how fantasy theatre participates in global storytelling practices, actualising its worlds on multiple levels in ways that create the sense that the storyworlds exist beyond the stage and are thus able to prompt generative action. Furthermore, the chapter argues that the ostensible return to adapting texts more closely aligned with their adapted texts corresponds to both increased immersion in narratives in the twenty-first century and the need for linear, familiar storytelling in the face of various cultural uncertainties. Regardless of its motivations—partially also financial—fantasy theatre then becomes a multi-faceted genre worth exploring further, as it, indeed, has a magic of its own.