Aladdin

This pantomime had a capacity audience, loud and expectant, they were not to be disappointed, and great to see so many children in the audience. Pantomime is often the first experience of the theatre for children, whether in the audience or in the cast, a good Panto captures them for life and this show was going to do that from the start.

The opening with Abanazar asking for information made good use of a gauze and with good lighting design was very imaginative and gave us a foretaste of what was to come set wise and lighting. Although the cloths were hired in, they were appropriate for each scene and there were some great props especially the mangle and the tumble dryer and I loved Widow Twankey’s entrance on a hoverboard. Also, the clever use of representing the colours of precious stones in the colours of the dancer’s costumes (Emerald Green, Sapphire Blue, Ruby Red etc.) in the Magic Cave. The lighting throughout was colourful and well designed with a well-lit stage and sound was generally good, dialogue throughout was good and clear. As always, as the show comes towards the end of its run, lines tend to swop around between characters but this only adds to the fun for the audience. Another great treat is to await the appearance of the Dame in all her various costumes and these were really great. The costumes for all throughout the show looked really good, colourful and well fitted. A thankyou to the stage crew member who had the task of crawling around pushing the flying carpet which looked really impressive.

The Principals were all well cast and gave great performances. Justine McGarrity as Abanazar was suitably booed and hissed and carried off the role well, I do hope the voice survives to the end of the run, leading a great opening number ‘Highway to Hell’, Poppy Brewster was a good Aladdin and worked well with Jessie Auciello’s Princess Jasmine giving us some sweet duets ‘Love at First Sight’ ‘I’ll be There’ and then with Emily Hales’s Slave of the Ring singing ‘A Whole New World’. We had a delightfully blue Charlotte McAllister as the Genie of the Lamp who together with the Adult Chorus and Senior Dancers gave a great ‘You’re Welcome’. We had the inevitable pair of dim-witted characters, PC Ping and PC Pong, respectively Hannah Collins and Nieve Dawson who we first met haplessly trying to clear the streets, they worked well together throughout the show. Princess Jasmine always has to have a father trying to find the best suitor for her and here we had Andrew Downing as the Emperor of China trying his best to dissuade her from falling for Aladdin but failing despite giving us an imperial performance.

Despite the show being all about Aladdin, we’ve all really come to see and laugh at Wishee Washee and his mother Widow Twankee, here we were not disappointed by respectively Niall McGarrity and Bobby Herman. These two were a great double act, energetic and loud, not only in costume but in encouraging the audience. Bobby gave us a great Dame with a good stage presence, strutting his various costumes around the stage. Nial gets more comfortable each time he appears in Panto, so confident and a good voice, this time he was trying to outdo the Dame costume wise, the two of them together with Aladdin gave an entertaining ‘Sand Dance’.

The choreography throughout the show was well designed and gave some new ideas, the three different dance groups all gave good performances, the Junior dancers were drilled as well as that age group could be. I enjoyed the senior dancers Swan Lake’s Pas de Trois.

Together with the Adult Chorus this was a good company show, entertaining and fun. Even with the large cast the stage never looked crowded, everyone performed in time and gave good vocals.

For director Lisa and team, you should be pleased with this show and thanks to all who worked back stage and front of house.

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