Alice in Wonderland

SNADS came up trumps with this witty show from Limelight Scripts. As a newcomer to any ‘Alice’ panto, I was prepared to be disappointed, but not a bit of it – whilst drawing on the original characters and plot, this show was entertaining from start to finish, packed full of colourful characters and zany situations. If energy is the key to panto, SNADS provided it in bucketloads. With an all-age company, a live band and a lively mixture of song, dance and action, there was hardly a dull moment.

Teegan Pearce was a stroppy, foot-stamping Alice, and Trevor Puckett the breathless and navigationally-challenged White Rabbit. Dave Meakin was a most engaging Joker, sweeping through Wonderland on a tide of smiles and corny jokes. Tania White’s maniacal laughter rang true for the domineering Queen of Hearts, while Mike Johnston played an excellent King, achieving the difficult balance between timid and regal. Princess Becci Ridout’s ballad ‘To Make You Feel My Love’ perfectly suited her country-style voice, and Ian Greig was decidedly chilled in his twenty-fifth year of playing the Dame – how lovely not to hear a falsetto. There was totally logical craziness from the March Hare (Rebecca Horn) and the Mad Hatter (Bridget Pyle), aided and abetted by Harry Steggles as the Dormouse.

Almost everyone worked hard in this production, including the athletic Fireflies, Goblins and chorus of Wonderlanders. The Soldier Cards were brilliantly inept at just about everything! The Caterpillar (Tara Donnelly) was suitably dreamy and the transformation into a butterfly was an unusual effect. The Cheshire Cat (Emma Steggles) faded in and out via a gauze-covered tree. I’m unsure where the Haggis chorus fit into the story, nor the psychedelic hippy group, the Travelling Bilberries - perhaps in Wonderland we should expect the unexpected. But stars of the show, without a doubt, were the outstanding Tweedledee and Tweedledum, played by mother-and-daughter duo Alison and Jessica Mash, trotting a perfectly-timed pas-de-deux - perfect, in fact in all respects.

A really tight production and excellent entertainment. Congratulations, SNADS!

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