Aladdin

On entering the Hall, the first thing the audience saw was a very large lamp in the centre of the stage, which had smoke flowing from its spout, leaving no one in any doubt about what they were going to see, there was also a pedestal stage right, which was in darkness, and had something sitting on the top.  Just before the start of the show the Lamp was removed ready for the retelling of this well-known story, with a few twists.  The imposingly evil figure of Abanazar appeared, and told us in rhyme, in no uncertain terms what evil deeds he intended.  The Spirit of the ring appeared in a cascade of sparkles when summoned and these two conversed in rhyme.  It became clear that the figure on the pedestal was a brightly coloured Toucan, Tui, who spent the show trying to arrange flights for everyone, he was great fun.  He was an animated puppet and amazingly well operated and voiced.  His beak co-ordination and movements were lovely.

There were several well painted, glittery back cloths which took the action to the various locations.  The Spin City Laundry with the ‘practical’ washing machine, and mangle worked well, as did the Cave of Wonders but my favourite was the Palace Garden with the sparkling fountain and pool.  There well designed, operated and cued lighting effects, making sure the stage was always appropriately lit for each scene; the moving lights were set so they did not dazzle the audience, the spot on Tui worked well; the pyro effects were gentle and well cued.  The lighting for the magic carpet was excellent, the carpet really flew about the stage, changing levels, really magical, I did not see the operators until a couple of second before the scene ended and then was just aware of movement, but I had been concentrating very hard trying to work out how it was done.  The sound effects were well sourced and fitted the show, I liked the Cave opening.  The microphones were well cued and controlled, and the balanced between music and voices was mostly good, but a couple of musical numbers overpowered.  The Band, under the direction of Callum Webb, played well, accompanying the well taught singing.  The costumes were amazing, they were colourful, sparkly, fitted well and definitely shouted Pantomime.  The make-up looked good and specialised makeup for the characters requiring it was well designed and applied.  The choreography had been well devised and taught by Lucy Cragg.  It was lively, precise and energetic.  Everyone danced very well looking comfortable and confident, with the ‘dancers’ always full of energy and lovely smiles.

The show had been well cast with everyone entering into the spirit of the Pantomime.

Abanazar was strongly played as a truly evil villain, he had the audience booing from his first appearance, he talked through his song well.  The young lady who was the Spirit of the Ring, was a total contrast, she made a lovely entrance and exuded joy and hope, she had excellent diction.  As I said previously Tui was adorable, truly a character in its own right.  The young man playing Aladdin showed a subtle change of persona when he was the Prince, and worked well with Jasmine.  He sang, danced and acted with confidence, and the audience were all on his side.  Princess Jasmine was a lively, energetic young lady who was irritated by the restrictions placed upon her.  She sang, acted and danced well, every inch a fairytale princess.  Jasmine and Aladdin created a believable couple with good interaction and duets.  Picky Nicky, Jasmines chaperone, was a lovely character, a bit zany and a stickler for rules, she had a rule for everything that happened, she maintained her accent well.  Wishy Washy, brother of Aladdin, a comic character, engaged the audience well, and enlisted their help in protecting the ‘family carpet’.  He was a lovable, gentle character bursting with energy and had a nice duet with Picky Nicky.   Widow Twanky, mother to Aladdin and Wishy Washy, was a gently flirtatious character, who engaged the audience in her search for a husband, and found someone who was prepared to play along with her.  ‘She’ had some lovely outfits which suited the character, and her ‘over exposure’, if it was part of the script, was handled very well and the cast reactions after a week of performances was excellent.  The Empress was a strong character who spoke with clear diction, and was mostly in control, making sure everywhere was thoroughly sanitized.  Marigold and Linguini, who bore a remarkable resemblance to Super Mario Brothers Mario and Luigi, were absolute hoots, as the minions of the Empress who kept spraying everyone with ‘sanitizer’.  They had an hilarious well executed video game routine, which everyone loved.  The Genie of the Lamp was very boisterous and larger than life, with a lovely costume and makeup.  There was a great section with all the Ts and Cs.  The Ensemble were very strong, they engaged well with the action and sang and danced with energy and enthusiasm, they were what every Pantomime ensemble should be.  It was so nice to see so many SPYS and ex-SPYS members in the cast.

Ross Brown had written a fun, family pantomime and Director and Assistant Director James Murden and Maggie Allsopp had interpreted it well.  The pace was good, jokes well pointed, the audience knew when and how to respond.  If anything, it was a little long which made it a bit late finishing for a Pantomime for young children, but having said that the audience were totally absorbed and had really enjoyed it.  It was a thoroughly entertaining evening.  Well done everyone.

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