7th December 2019
It's Panto Season again - doesn't the time fly by?
This year The People's Theatre has opted for Dick Whittington. The tale of an ambitious lad from Heatonia who sets off into the wide world to try to make something of himself. He arrives in London expecting great things - he's heard that the streets are paved with gold. The reality, sadly, is not so glamourous. London's streets are dirty and smelly - due to an infestation of rats, lead by the evil Queen Rat (Kate Reilly) who plans on beating the townsfolk into submission and then making herself Lord Mayor.
Of course there I a fly in her ointment in the form of a young boy, pure of heart, who will thwart her plans and become Mayor himself - I wonder who that could possibly be? Might it be our very own Dick Whittington? Oh, yes! It could!
We learn of Dick's fate from the Spirit of Bow Bells, who is charged with helping Dick achieve greatness. Now if I may say so Bow Bells lacks a certain assertiveness, and I feared if put to the test his magic might not stand against that of Queen Rat! However, whatever Paul Gaitskell's silvery sprite lacks in magical assertiveness he more than makes up for in style - sporting possibly the best costume in the panto, he twinkles and sparkles across stage.
He does provide Dick with Tommy the Cat though - who proves to be a formidable ally in the fight against the rats and Emma Cockburn wins the hearts of the audience as Dick's purrfect feline friend.
Dick (Evelyn Ryan) meets Alice (Alice Dalgleish), daughter of Alderman Fitzwarren (Stewart Dives) and it is love at first sight (naturally, this is panto and there has to be a wedding!) He gains employment in the Alderman's shop hoping to prove himself worthy to court Alice. But Queen Rat foils his plans by hypnotising the feckless Idle Jack and making him hide the Alderman's cash in Dick's bundle. Dick is sacked and sent away, while he rest of the cast get ready for a trip to Morocco to buy goods to stock the shop. Are you still following this?
Of course, Bow Bells calls Dick back - turn again Whittington! - and he stows away (as does Alice) so that he can prove his innocence, beat Queen Rat and marry Alice... (come on, that's not a spoiler, we all know there's going to be a happy ending, wha you don't know is how it will all come about - and for that you're going to have a buy a ticket and go see the show!)
Stars of the show are undoubtedly Steve Robertson as Sarah the Cook, and Joe Robson as Idle Jack who between them provide almost all of the terrible jokes and keep the audience laughing. Joe's energy throughout keeps the show bowling along and both the adults and the kids in the audience fully engaged. Roger Liddle is excellent (as always) in the role of Captain Flotsam and he is more than ably helped by First Mate Ben Dover, played brilliantly by Nick Warneford - he deserves a bigger role if he auditions for next year's panto! The dancers from Jill Errington's School of Dance were as adorable as ever, providing the awh! factor as the little ones come on in their cute costumes.
There is lots of skulduggery, lots of bad jokes - I mean, really, really bad jokes - some singing, some dancing, a load of pyrotechnics (bit loud and smoky!) and loads of laughs! This is a traditional panto, and it hits pretty much all the buttons for a good evening out - whether you go with the kids, or like me, with your big sister!
Well worth it for an evening away from politics and Brexit - take a night off and go have some good old fashioned fun.
Dick Whittington plays until 15th December - book in advance to be sure of a seat.
Denise Sparrowhawk
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