Aladdin

Aladdin a pantomime staged by St Paul’s Players at Adlington Community Centre, Railway Road, Adlington, Chorley on Friday, 5th January, 2024

I think we all probably know the rags to riches story of Aladdin… the son of a washerwoman, who despite not being allowed, by law, to gaze at the Princess, spies on her and eventually falls in love with her. The evil Abanazar seeks wealth and power and attempts to use Aladdin to fulfil this dream, whilst the Spirit of the Ring and the Genie of the Lamp help unravel the story further. This modern adaptation, penned by the ever so talented Alan P. Frayn doesn’t move very far from the original story!  It’s a very funny script with all the right ingredients you would except from a family panto! (This was the second ‘Frayn Pantomime’ I’d had the privilege to have seen in two days, having seen ‘The Pied Piper’ at Southport Little Theatre the previous evening!) …

The Production Team… the ever so experienced Graham Cohen (Director) had been tasked with bringing this panto to stage assisted by Dax Own (Producer), Kate Davies (Choreographer) and May Upton (Assistant Choreographer) and what a great job they made!  The team had gathered together a great mix of enthusiastic cast members… some experienced some less so, but they were all well-rehearsed and were only too ready and willing to give us their all when those lights came up!  I’d like to make ‘special mention’ of Kate Davies and May Upton who had an array of young dancers to work. We had four-year-olds performing, we had teenagers performing… each routine (and there were many) was cleverly devised and set to a standard that played to the strengths of all those involved… which isn’t always easy to achieve!  From the energy, the enthusiasm, the smiles on the young dancers faces, the applause that greeted each and every dance… you just knew that these routines had been ‘nailed’ and that they were being enjoyed by everyone, both on stage and off… be very proud you two, those routines enhanced the pantomime ever so much!  Well done one and all… great panto!

The Cast … well it’s ‘sticky neck out time’… where I start to suggest favourites…. MY favourites…but its where to start?  Well, I don’t think I should look much further than Ryan Stanton and Dax Owen who took on the ‘mum and son’ role of ‘Window Twanky’ and ‘Wishee Washee’ respectively!  OMG these two were hilarious!  From their first entrances to their final bows ... they just made you laugh!  Ryan created a wonderful Dame character, with great stage presence, wonderful comedic timing… great mannerisms and facial expressions, he connected and had a great rapport with the audience immediately.  Dax … first time in many years’ OUT OF THE DRESS’ … must have been a strange feeling, but it didn’t faze him!  He created a memorable character, as always, with great stage presence and wonderful comedic timing, his interaction with the audiences was second nature, and he had a ‘catch phrase’ to shout whenever came on…  ‘AH-SO’ … as you can imagine there were so many different pronunciations, bringing so many smiles and giggles for obvious reasons! Individually great as a ‘pair’ amazing… well done you two be very proud!  But, having said about ‘looking no further’, be proud you two!  I’ve mentioned May Upton before as ‘Assistant Choreographer, but this sixteen-year-old, also took on the role of ‘The Genie of the Lamp’… probably not the biggest of parts, but a part that she made her own and one that almost stole the show for me!  May is without doubt a ‘triple threat’… a wonderful actor, an amazing dancer and one who can ‘belt out’ a song with the best of them… her rendition of a ‘Friend Like Me’ amazing!  Confident, assured, stage presence aplenty… her own dancing ability was outstanding… one to look out for in the future without doubt… be very proud May!  Jamie Flavell did a great job with the ‘nasty’, but not to nasty as to frighten the younger members of the audience… ‘Abanazar’ the magician. Loved the mannerisms, the gait and the facial expressions… never out of character, be proud Jamie!  Loved, loved, loved the Comedy Duo that was Leanne Romney and David Greenfield playing Pc Wong and Pc Pong respectively.  I really do love a good comedy duo… they really are part of panto tradition for me… and these two had the characters off to an art!  They bounced off each other continuously, good comedic timing, just two great characters … loved their involvement in ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’ sketch’ with Twanky and Wishee!  Well done you two… be very proud!  Our two leads ‘Aladdin’ and ‘Princess Mandarin’ were played by Meredith Atherton and Imogen Bradley respectively.  There was a good rapport between these two… well done you two!  Siobhan Edge took on the role of ‘The Empress’ and made the part her own!  Siobhan’s ability to create a character is legendary, and this was no different!  Jane McQueen played the ‘Spirit of the Ring’ and Frankie Budge played the princess’s handmaiden and close friend ‘So Shy’.  Our Ensemble was basically made up of forty-one young dancers and included Grace Smith, Phoebe Dunning, Ellie Hunter, Sky Taylor, Isabella Owen, Layla Roseben, Ariana Chappelhow, Aviana Rothwell, Millie Brooke, Freya Norse, Amelia (Mini) Lockwood, Penelope Upton, Eadie Philpot, Ethan Towner, Violet Hodge, Felicity Lewis, Martha Coleman.  We then had the Junior B Group… Katie Cobden, Mabel McQueen, Layla Young, Isabella Towner, Olivia Chapmen, Madeline Nelson, Juliette Flavell, Tilly Coleman and Lucie Cobden.  Next came Senior A … May Upton, Connie Upton, Lily Newness, Ophelia Chappelhow, Sophie Lockwood, Mille Wells, Grace Brooke and Freya Lewis and finally Senior B… Lilah Philpot, Lyla Wilkinson, Jake Newnes, Amber Chatterjee, Hollie Thompson, Ameera Bakhit and Darcey Locke… please be aware of what an amazing job youall did throughout this production…. be very proud!

Staging/Tech … I’ve said this before, but I honestly don’t mind repeating myself…  St Paul’s are blessed with some wonderful ‘back stage people’… which included the ever-present Jill Heeks (Stage Manager) and her crew… Vince Taylor, Andy Lane, Alan Leyland, Richard Houghton, Steve Pilkington, Steve Blundell, Kamil Kupniewski and David Worsley!  These folk make things look far easier than they actually are... smooth, quiet scene changes, no lengthy blackouts… be proud one and all.  All the sets were amazing with some great backdrops to most if not every scene. I thought the ‘Cave Scene’ designed by Howard Bates was superb (PS: loved the echo and the lighting effects in the cave well done sound/lighting people). I also loved the opening to Act 2 with the laundry, which just flowed and was a great way to open Act 2 … be very proud each and all! 
Sound… overseeing the sound we had the ever so experienced Joanna and Natalie Sweet and Richard Cornes… well done folk’s great job.
Lighting by another ever present Stuart Naylor, the lighting was another feature that enhanced this production ever so much… be proud!

Costumes: were fabulous, colourful and again enhanced the production!  
Props: effective, used ever so well … under the watchful eye of Sue Heyes and Becca and Georgia Hilton

Matrons/Chaperones… being a Licenced Chaperone myself, I can only imagine the time and effort it must have taken to keep forty-one young performers happy and involved when off stage, especially knowing the ‘space’ on offer!  Although not named… I really can’t move on without congratulating those unnamed people who offer time and energy to provide these young people with the opportunity to perform on stage …. well done folks, this really couldn’t happen without you!

Thank you so much for inviting my wife and I and thanks to Graham Cohen for his attention throughout the evening and to St Pauls for their hospitality throughout.  It was great to have the opportunity to speak with Katie Davies (Choreographer) during the interval.  We are already looking forward to ‘Everybody’s Talking about Jamie’ in March and before closing, can I just take this opportunity to wish everyone at St Paul’s a Happy New Year!

Stay safe, keep well…

“Stronger Together” …

Jim Briscoe
NODA NW   
District 6 Rep

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