Aladdin

I am very familiar with the Alan Frayn scripts and while the main body of a Frayn script remains unchanged, he does carry out an element of re-write every year to keep the jokes fresh and to avoid stagnation. This is something that you don’t get with other panto providers and contributes to his popularity. In fact this year virtually all the amateur pantomimes in my NODA district used Frayn scripts. 

This subject is one of my favourites of his scripts and is very entertaining. It sticks to the traditional storyline which is essential so as not to confound an audiences expectations. Pantomime is built on tradition and if an audience does not get what they expect with pantomime, they will not be happy. Every pantomime group also has its own traditions so one can expect much the same every year from each group depending on what they like to include in their shows. This production maintained the pantomime traditions and also the BOADS traditions in the way they stage their show. 

A forced re-casting in the last week of rehearsals could have spelled disaster as it was the part of Abanazer (a large role in this script) that had to be re-cast. However a chap from another local group who had played it a year previously, came to the rescue, and my goodness wasn’t he good. His performance was excellent, with great timing and a good presentation of the character. I cannot give his name as it isn’t in the programme and was only announced briefly. He was backed up by a very competent company and I have to say that this panto was one of the best I have seen here for a long time. The main reason being the comedy within the production. The cast delivered the laugh lines well and with good timing and the very responsive audience laughed loud and long. 

Ellie Jonas was a very perky and personable Aladdin and was well partnered with Paige Berry who was a more serene Princess. The immortals in this story were very well played indeed by Eleanor Price as The Spirit of the Ring and Jaime Brown as the Genie of the Lamp, once again displaying good timing and in Jaime’s case a good flair for comedy.

Inevitably many of the best roles are the comedy roles and young Zach Olsen was very impressive as Wishee Washee. He had a good rapport with the audience and probably the best timing of the company. He will go far. He partnered well with Paul Rice as Widow Twankey who looked a treat in his costumes. I also enjoyed the performances of Yvonne Rice and Claire Hext as the comic policemen. They worked well as a pair and their expressions and general demeanour were very entertaining. 

The entire cast of principals worked very hard indeed and there were no weak links at all. The smaller than usual chorus and the dancers all contributed nicely to the musical numbers which were neat and well drilled. I would have liked more focus for some of the ensemble as attention wandered at times and this was evident from the audience. 

This group always provide their own scenery and costumes where possible and the result was colourful and worked well. I would have liked less use of the blacks but I understand the logistical and cost implications of making cloths, so maybe more thought could be given to a composite set where all the elements are there to start with.

Kaitey led a pit band of 3 musicians who supported well without swamping the cast, but I would have liked the keyboard to be more dominant. I gather there might have been an issue as during the interval she was in deep conversation with the techies who were testing her speakers etc. I would have also liked much more input from the percussionist with regards to the sound effects and prat falls that support the comedy throughout such a production. The musical numbers were kept very short indeed and this was excellent. Frayn scripts can tend to play a bit long and in order to get them down in less than 2.5 hours it is essential to keep songs short and cut some of the musical number slots. This was done with the desired effect. Never let a song outstay its welcome and this production did not. There was good choice of songs which kept the show flowing nicely and on the whole the songs were nicely delivered.

I would like to see better use of music to link scenes together, and for the cast to really bring the show on with them and take it off with them. Never walk on with a sense of apology, come on with a bang and musical intros and exits are helpful here. We had them at times, but not at others. Music and percussion effects could have also been used to underpin the audience run-arounds which tended to fall a bit flat as a result. Never have any quiet moments in pantomime where nothing seems to be happening or there is no sound. 

My criticisms are purely constructive and the audience were there to be entertained and they left having been mightily entertained. It was a good evening and I really enjoyed myself. Well done to all.

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