While proper critics have been somewhat disappointed by the play, complaining about intellectual under-nourishment and predictability, The Priory for me was just the thing to see in December and you should all go as well.
(And critics should avoid the word 'chum' - it crept into all the reviews somehow and sat there as a graying linguistic entity).



I loved the production design to begin with: from the John Lewis laps, to the reindeer trophy covered in fairy lights and those big gothic windows staring out to the godforsaken rural nowhere baring ghost. Splendid. 

The costumes were hilarious, spot on and plenty. The picture above doesn't do it justice really, it was more like the Nutcracker meets his Fatal Attraction in a drag-bar. I could linger over the semiotics of a muffin top inflicted by skinny jeans, or how a sky-blue pair of socks might be the perfect finishing touch to a character, but the snob inside me puts a stop to that.  

Onto the play than: I haven't laught so much in theatre in ages. It is just really funny and well acted. The piece was naturally not written for eternety , it is theatre-lite with a few lower notes, its fresh and entertaining and it will be so last year next year.
This carpe diem comedy unites an eclectic mix stereotypical characters: Brigit Jones gone bad and her queer sidekick, who falls short of heterosexual preconceptions, party with Mr Failure and Mrs Power Lesbian cum Mummy Biggest accompanied by dream-pair du joure.

The best reason to go and see The Priory is to attend a New-Year Party and be done with it. Buy the ticket, watch the play, breathe a sigh of relief and tick the midnight-misery with champaign and smudged make-up off your list. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lphmbIPlq9g

Aladdin

The Tyne Theatre & Opera House, Newcastle

Until Saturday 9 January 2010

Forget the big budgets, forget the spectacular special effects – if it’s a traditional family pantomime that you’re after look no further than Aladdin at the Tyne Theatre and Opera House.

Once again, Newcastle Pantomime Company presents a show that contains more slapstick, sing-along songs, silly jokes and festive frolics than you can shake a seasonal stick at.

The cast is headed by former Doctor Who and Emmerdale star Frazer Hines as Wishee Washee, and his endearing performance of the loveable laundry layabout is a real hit with the kids in the audience. His affable nature and comedy timing are a testament to his skill as a performer, and it is easy to see why this is his 28^th consecutive pantomime.

Maxie Peters and Billy Mitchell make a great comedic double-act as Sergeant Ping and Constable Pong and their special brand of madcap mayhem is delivered in the style of true vaudevillians.

Kevin O’Keefe dons the most outrageous and outlandish costumes and wigs as the man-mad Widow Twankey, Old Peking’s very own version of Dot Branning, whilst Brendan Healy receives a barrage of booing and hissing as the evil Abanazar.

The title role is performed by Jayne MacKenzie and her shapely legs and powerful vocals make her the perfect principal boy. Catherine McCabe is slightly limited in the role of Princess Jasmine, yet never lets an opportunity to shine pass her by.

Jim Kitson as the Emperor and Kim Atkinson, doubling-up as So-Shy and The Slave of the Ring, considerably add to the overall entertainment.

The sets are bright, bold and gloriously colourful and there are some fantastic costumes, too – Abanazar’s fabulous bejewelled shroud must have made a hefty dent in the wardrobe budget. Throw into the mix a dancing elephant named Fatima, a parody of SuBo and Jedward, an ensemble of six, and a live orchestra and you are rewarded with a production packed with magic and mystique that offers real family fun.

Steve Burbridge.

 

As so many theatres seem to believe that “Christmas is for children”, thank goodness Manchester Royal Exchange always keeps something special in reserve for the grown-ups.  This year’s classic show is Blithe Spirit, Noel Coward’s “improbable farce” about a séance which goes horribly wrong.

As well relishing the sophisticated drawing-room comedy we associate with Coward, Sarah Frankcom’s production goes at a cracking pace and sets up a series of slap-stick sequences which are eventually topped by a genuinely impressive coup-de-théâtre, courtesy of designer Liz Ascroft.

When the Royal Exchange are looking for suavity and sophistication the first person they call is Milo Twomey, whose debonair manner and raffish charm suit Charles Condomine perfectly.  Ex-Coronation Street actor Suranne Jones plays his second wife Ruth with style and conviction, while Nelly Harker strops about admirably as the late lamented Elivira.  And Peter Temple and Wendy Nottingham demonstrate how two first-rate actors can flesh out the comparatively small parts of Dr and Mrs Bradman and turn them into fully-rounded characters.

However scene after scene is stolen by Annette Badland in the plumb role of Madame Arcati.  Ms Badland leaves her dignity at the door to play the medium as an overgrown schoolgirl who scuttles about the Condomines’ house gobbling sandwiches, snuffling like a dog, and eventually falling into a dead faint with her skirts around her ears.  Madame Arcati is probably the closest the Royal Exchange will get to a pantomime dame this season, only with a much better line in wit and repartee.

 

Blithe Spirit is on until Saturday 23 January 2010

Prices: £8.50-£29.50

Evenings: Mon-Fri @ 7.30, Sat @ 8pm

Matinees: Wed @ 2.30, Sat @ 4pm

Box Office: 0161 833 9833

www.royalexchange.co.uk

 Treasure Island is arguably one of the greatest works of storytelling in the English language. It developed from an imaginary map that Stevenson and his stepson Lloyd Osbourne had devised on holiday and this goes some way towards explaining the book's appeal among children. The tale is the archetypal nineteenth century ripping yarn, set in the “golden age of piracy.” Our narrator is Jim Hawkins, son of a guesthouse owner on the west coast of England sometime in the early eighteenth century. To the inn come firstly an old buccaneer who has a map of Captain Flint's treasure, and secondly a group of pirates under the command of ominous blind man Pew. Jim Hawkins, in an act of bravery and cunning, gets hold of the map before this rabid mob gets it. He delivers the map to Squire Trelawney, and together they set off for Treasure Island in the Squire's schooner. The rest of the crew, apart from Dr Livesey, are selected by Long John Silver. The latter and his men try to mutiny and get hold of the treasure themselves but Jim intervenes and through a series of enthralling adventures we find ourselves on Treasure Island with the marooned Ben Gunn and ever closer to the treasure itself.

The auditorium of the Rose is changed into a pirates' paradise (set design – Paul Wills) complete with treasure map, anchors, boats, fishing nets, ropes, and a treasure chest. The floor is transformed into the ocean by the beautiful lighting (designed by Ben Ormerod) and the sound of waves crashing against the shore. There are many cheerful seafaring songs in the show including What Shall We Do with the Drunken Sailor, 15 Men on the Dead Man’s Chest, The Good Ship Hispaniola, and the highly addictive tune Treasure Island Bound which set the right mood for this great swashbuckling adventure.  There are good performances throughout - Harry McEntire plays an endearing Jim Hawkins, Richard Bremmer convinces as the charismatic Long John Silver, and Daniel Goode provides the comic element of the show as the hilarious but touching Squire Trelawny.

This show is great fun and a Christmas treat for the whole family!         

11 December - 9 January
Tickets £7 - £29.50
Box office: 0871 230 1552
© Rose Theatre - Kingston 2008. 24-26 High Street, Kingston, KT1 1HL

Adrian Berry's adapation of the well-loved story CINDERELLA is given new life in this thoroughly entertaining, quirky, top quality show at Jackons Lane.

From the opening scene, Cinderella, ( beautifully played by Stacha Hicks), ambles through the audience in her other guise as Aunt Ella who finds an abandoned baby on a beach. That baby turns out to be Cinderella. It's a wonderful opening to this clever adapation that immediately propels us into the world of the piece. Hicks has a quality of immediacy and freshness that instinctively engages us on many levels. Her comic physicality marks her out as a very special performer and although it's difficult to chose her best moments, being so many in this role, her rendition of the Tango dance with Buttons the 'magic mouse' is a laugh-out-loud highlight.

Christian Lee delivers a touching performance as Victor, the gauche teenager & talented magician at Dr Kane's School, who falls in love at first sight when he meets Cinderella, the latest recruit. Casting a skilled magician in this lead acting role is genius and allows for the additional element of magic to be worked into the storyline. Already a well know entertainer and comedy magician, Lee shows us another string to his bow with this promising debut.

Dr Kane (Gordon Warnecke), the baddie in the piece, who runs the school purely to exploit the talents of it's pupils for commercial gain, doesn't know what to do with Cinderella as she doesn't seem to possess any talents of commercial value he can manipulate. Reminded by Aunt Ella of her specialness for just 'being herself' in the world, Cinderella gains strength in adversity in realising at least she 'knows who she is' and that's enough for her to be brave enough to go for what she wants - Victor's love.

So & So Circus Theatre (Kaveh Rahnama/Lauren Hendry) two of the other pupils at the school, replacing the traditional Two Ugly Sisters, are a further innovative addition to the storytelling and bring a dazzling display of highly skilled circus and tumbling routines with daredevil acrobatics and cheeky characterisations that wow and delight. Cinderella's entrapment in the world of reality TV and eventual escape with Victor is an ingenious way of highlighting to the children in the audience that life outside the world of 'the box' is far more colourful, and is to be lived to the full. 'Follow your heart'...Aunt Ella tells Cinderella and so she does.

With a simple and effective Gothic setting, colourful, funky costumes and moody atmospheric lighting, this year's excellent production at Jacksons Lane is a heartwarming, magical treat for both children and adults alike - a real 'must-see' during the Christmas Season.

CAST:

Stacha Hicks as CINDERELLA

Christian Lee as VICTOR

So & So Circus Theatre as CANDY & COLIN

Gordon Warnecke as DR KANE

SHOWS:

Wednesday 16 10am & 1.30pm
Thursday 17 10am & 1.30pm

Sunday 19 2pm & 5.30pm
Sunday 20 12pm & 3.30pm

Monday 21 2pm & 5.30pm
Tuesday 22 2pm & 5.30pm
Wednesday 23 2pm & 5.30pm
Thursday 24 2pm (Christmas Eve)

Saturday 26 2pm (Boxing Day)
Sunday 27 12pm & 3.30pm

Monday 28 2pm & 5.30pm
Tuesday 29 2pm & 5.30pm
Wednesday 30 2pm & 5.30pm
Thursday 31 2pm (New Year’s Eve)

January

Saturday 2 2pm & 5.30pm
Sunday 3 2pm

Listing Information

Venue

Jacksons Lane, 269a Archway Road, Highgate, London N6 5AA
Dates 7 December – 3 January (various times)
Press Night Wednesday 9 January 6.30pm (show starts 7.30pm)
Ages Suitable for all the family (recommended 4+)
Tickets £12.50 adults, £9.50 children & concessions, £40 family ticket
Ticket office 020 8341 4421 or

www.jacksonslane.org.uk
Travel Tube: Highgate (northern line) Buses: 263, 134 & 43

For more information please contact Clare Lewis (Marketing Manager) on
020 8347 2415 or via

clare@jacksonslane.org.uk

 

THE GREAT AMERICAN SEASONAL SONGBOOK                      

                                                              NEW END, HAMPSTEAD

 

 

The Great American Seasonal Songbook, the second contribution from Toby Cruse productions, proves to be a another winner for the New End Theatre. This joyful musical romp is a tribute to the music that dominated the States from 1920-1960.

Written by the classic composers of the time such as Cole Porter, George Gershwin and Rogers and Hammerstein, it was period that saw an new style of music grounded in the structures of  Tin Pan Alley, and relying heavily on jazz.  Much of it was originally written for Broadway musicals or Hollywood movies, and became the pop of the time as the songs were picked up by legendary singers such as Ella Fitzerald, Judy Garland and Frank Sinatra.

With the four seasons being the theme of the production there are nicely selected numbers that explore the emotions though out the year, and inevitably end up at the Christmas period.

There is outstanding musicianship from Andy Rumble on piano and Dave Olney on bass. They compliment each other perfectly, and despite their only being two of them they produce a sumptuously beautiful sound. With focused direction from Heather Simpkin the show happily bounces along. There are consummate performances by Louisa Parry and David Martin. Parry seems most at home with songs that have a  dramatic edge, and there are moving interpretations of Spring Will be a Little Late This Year, Stormy Weather and You’ll Never Walk Alone. Martin clearly has fun with the frothy numbers but is equally at home with more heartfelt songs like April in Paris and Autumn Leaves. Martin fully embraces the sprit of the show, is constantly mischievous and as gloriously camp as Christmas.

The Xmas section visits the classic holiday songs that have touched listeners from one to 92, and is a fitting way to end the evening.

The Great American Seasonal Songbook is a treat for anyone who appreciates wonderful vocal performances and great musical craftsmanship. This is the perfect Christmas gift for a loved one.

 

OLIVER VALENTINE                                                 

                                                                Box Office: 0870 033 2733

There is something magical about pantomime at Christmas.  The plot lines may be as predictable as Simon Cowell’s wardrobe and jokes might be as corny as Kansas in August ... but the magic inevitably comes from the reaction of the kids!

 

Gerard Kelly and Karen Dunbar headline the £1 million production of Aladdin at the King’s Theatre in Glasgow this year.  As Wishy Washy and Widow Twanky they had the audience in stitches throughout, delivering lines from the practiced pen of writer, Bob Black.  The title role was stylishly played by panto newbie, Keith Jack (Scottish runner up in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s recent search for Joseph), and his romantic companion, Princess Jasmine, was delightfully portrayed by Frances Mayli McCann.  The romantic leads’ voices, in particular, blended beautifully on stage.  Gavin Mitchell was the subject of the audience’s “boos” as the diabolically wicked Abanazar.

 

The supporting cast had a suitably diverse range of talent from the lively distractions of the 8 ensemble dancers to the comedy duo of Bryan Lowe and Mark Prendergast.  They were joined by an unbilled cameo by Andy Gray as the Genie.

 

The Credit Crunch was left outside on the cold doorstep of the King’s Theatre as the production showed every penny of the £1m budget.  There was more smoke onstage than on the doorstep of a Glasgow pub and the flying effects of cast and carpet were worth the ticket price alone!  Costumes werestunning and the stage sparkled throughout.

 

Treat yourself to some Christmas Cheer at the King’s this year!

 

Listings Info:

ALADDIN

Until Sun 17 January 2010

Tickets: £6 - £24.50

Box Office 0844 871 7648 (Bkg fee)

Groups and Schools Sales 0141 240 1122

www.ambassadortickets.com/glasgow (bkg fee)

Surely if you've seen one pantomime you've seen them all? Like the Christmas present you've already identified before it's been unwrapped, you may well assume you already know panto and its well-worn conventions, and that it's not for you. If that's the case you're in for a surprise with Jemima Levick's Peter Pan. Yes it entertains children with its own childlike sense of wonder but, unlike other pantos it also sends up the old conventions, giving the production a unique sparkle.

The characters are not your standard pantomime line-up. The typically whimsical Peter Pan has added depth as an adolescent really struggling to come to terms with his feelings for Wendy. Similarly Hook is not your average villain, instead he seems to self-consciously 'play the baddie'. The conflict between good and evil drives the plot so we might expect a more sinister Hook, even if the role is played tongue in cheek. Nevertheless the doubling up of Stuart Bowman as both Hook and Mr. Darling makes for a clever and unsettling comparison: is the father who mischievously spikes Nana's milk really so different from the pirate who maliciously poisons Peter? The doubling up of Tiger Lilly and Liza the nurse is equally unusual and Francesca Dymond switches between the roles with ease. Similarly casting a male Tinkerbell provides a refreshing alternative to the traditional panto dame. While the interpretation of Nana as a sweep reluctantly dressed up as a dog seems a little contrived, it nevertheless reinforces the overall theme of the play as a make-believe story put on by the children.

Interpreting the play as the children's fantasy is a clever twist that makes the story more believeable for adults as we then see it through the eyes of a child. The idea of play-acting is also brilliantly explored in the way the production is staged. Francis O' Connor's fascinating set centres round the children's giant bed which is magically trasnformed into the play's many locations, as if the children have never left the nursery and are instead pretending to be on an adventure. The stage itself also changes form, with the actors' suggestions: one moment they mime swimming, as if they're at sea, and the next they mime skating on ice. Even the kite that carries Wendy to safety cleverly doubles as the crocodile, continuing that sense of creative potential that children see in things.

Indeed while the production is unusually throught-provoking, with its unconventional characters and ironic approach to the fantasy, it still appeals to the younger viewers' sense of wonder. Not only does the vibrant, ever-changing set leave the audience eager to see where we are going to be taken next, but the illusions are equally compelling. The flying and combat scenes are convincing and skilfully executed and throughout there are touches of magic, like the sequence in which all the boys miraculously fit into Wendy's tiny house!

To sum up, Levick's Peter Pan is all about playing, whether with the conventions of pantomime or in the sense of play-acting or just childlike playing for its own sake. Instead of being formulaic this panto is, on the contrary, a celebration of free-thinking that would make Peter Pan proud. Indeed although I've been a panto Scrooge in the past, now the next time someone suggests that 'If you've seen one panto you've seen them all', I'll be the first to say 'Oh no you haven't!'.

Felicity Thomson

Peter Pan, The Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh
27th November 2009- 3rd Janaury 2010

 

 

Panto season has pounced on us again... well, why didn't you say so?!
 
Richmond Theatre is currently showcasing 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' until January 10^th, 2010. A few modern twists on a family favourite, it still manages to ring true to the original tale while providing a laugh for the adults and kids alike.
 
Jane Asher receives the wrath of the audience as the Wicked Queen and stepmother of Snow White. While she doesn't have the singing voice of her younger cast, she knows how to hold the attention of the audience and taunt them deliciously.
 
Music wise, original songs from the show such as 'Whistle while you work' and 'Heigh-ho' are infused with singing and dancing numbers based around 'Ghostbusters', 'Thriller' and 'Mercy'. The latter raised a few eyebrows with a slightly raunchy performance by the three male dancers as they twirled and pandered to their Wicked Queen. However, who said Panto was just for children?!
 
Sapphire Elia looks the part of Snow White - petite, pretty and childlike. Sugary sweet, the children love her and are quite happy to warn her of the dangers that lay await on stage.
 
The romance is provided by the handsome Prince, David Gale. Blonde and blue eyed with a solid singing voice, he looks natural on stage and will surely have a fine career ahead of him.
 
The Woodsman is replaced the 'Queen's Magician' which brings a welcome change. Played by Jonathan Shotton - he may actually just be playing himself! A highly regarded and awarded magician, he brings a bit of sparkle to the stage with his classic tricks, jumping between evil and ultimately good.
 
The most interactive of the cast and friend of the audience comes in the form of 'Muddles', played by Tim Vine. He laps up his role as friend of Snow White, who is always 'in a muddle' for the kids, with a tongue in cheek performance for the adults.
 
The ensemble of seven dwarfs have some excellent credentials behind them, provide some great comic banter and are collectively all played by dwarfs.
 
The script and direction are all good, the set design shimmers and the 'Dame' of Panto, Nurse Nora (Stephen David), provides the drag queen fashion and presence to ensure the good times roll.
 
Overall it works fantastically, if a bit routine. However, looking around the theatre, you know why we are all here at this time of year - for the kids, for the families and for the young at heart.