Babes in the Wood

Sutton’s Green Hut Theatre Company treated us to their version of Babes in the Wood to kick off Christmas in style. This meant we were also introduced to Robin Hood and his Merry Men, the Sheriff of Nottingham and Nurse Buttercup. There was even a cameo appearance from King Richard the Lionheart (Bryan Blackie) who was also one of the producers and the stage manager. Talk about multi-tasking!

There was an almost full house on Friday night as an enthusiastic audience supported their local society. The show was kicked off confidently by Mabel Smith who did a great job throughout as Alan A Dale. SGHTC is very fortunate to have so many promising younger members. Emma Howard as Maid Marion sang really beautifully in You Love Who You Love. She is very natural and pleasing on stage. Her Act Two duet with Robin was Right Hand Man from Something Rotten which fitted the mood perfectly and was delivered with great confidence.

We had to wait a while for our hero Robin to appear, but it was worth it. Emma-Jayne Jennings was an excellent Robin Hood, with a great singing voice, a ready smile and some great moves. Another multi-tasker, Emma-Jayne is also the choreographer for the show. Robin tried his hardest to protect the two babes played sweetly by Sienna Thomas and Megan Allport. They didn’t make Robin’s life easy by keep running away, but of course they were saved in the end.

Comedy was presented by the two knock-about fools, Katrina Knights and Alison Waters while Phil Smith and Kevin Stevenson-Fitton made another crazy pairing. Some of the jokes didn’t quite land with a younger audience but the physical comedy demonstrated that some humour never changes. The slapstick scene worked really well. It appeared well rehearsed, had great set pieces and proved that some jokes will never age. Well done to Phil and Kevin for this, it was my favourite moment of the show.

Last but not least, enter our baddy, Artie Firth the Sheriff of Nottingham. Artie did a great job in a fairly understated way and sporting a very convincing beard. He certainly got the audience hissing and booing.

Add to this some very merry men, a children’s ensemble and some great songs, this made a cheerful evening to get us in the Christmas spirit. Music was directed by David Knights. Working with backing tracks comes with its own challenges, especially getting the start and ending smooth and finding a suitable song in the right key for the performer, but there were some excellent song choices which appealed to all generations. The community song was great fun and was kept to a good length.

Many congratulations to the Wardrobe team: Alison Waters, Anna Stead and Doreen Smith (who also co-produced the show). The costumes were really excellent throughout. Add to that a set which worked efficiently, so it’s a well done all round for keeping village panto alive and well and living in Sutton.

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