Cinderella

I must, first of all, congratulate everyone on stage and production team for bringing this age-old story to life once again. There was a buzz from start to finish suggesting that they were enjoying performing once again. It has been a difficult with absences due to Covid but everyone behind the scenes believed in the cast and it paid off. Many of the cast had never been on that stage before but it didn’t show so give yourselves a pat on the back. I know that my brief is to comment on the performance and not the material. However, in this case, I must mention Jackie Anderson for the clever concept of a Reduced, Reuse and Recycled Pantomime for the 21st Century and a script that never flagged and produced some interesting twists and turns.

As is usual with Spotlight the large cast were split into three groups covering the full age range and headed by some of the more experienced members. This time we had the Cinderella Group, The Uglies Group and the Royal Group.

There was a ‘running gag’ throughout the evening based on Hickory Dickory Dock. Hickory (Freya Gould) and Dickory (Alfie Stokes) kept us amused every time they popped out to deliver their lines. Nadine Hewitt (Buttons) had the unenviable task of getting the audience involved and she did this with enthusiasm. She was a bundle of energy from start to finish. Her duet with Leah Gallagher (Cinderella) showed what excellent voices they have. Mary (Charlotte Carter) was governess to all the children and her delivery of the song ‘Where the Lost Things Go’ was a delight. There was solid support in the Cinderella group from Nellie Stokes (Child), Aislynn Menear (Mouse), Issy Simkiss (Mouse), Heidi Gottscall (Mouse), together with a strong ensemble of Nancy Arnold, Grace Elson, Ava Ford, Freya Longdon, Mason Riley and Emily Weaver.

The role of the Stepmother was in the very capable hands of Charlotte Farmer and she grows in confidence and stature every time that she performs and she certainly strutted her stuff in ‘All that Jazz’. She was well supported by the ugly sisters, all of them seemingly enjoying their characterisations, Teri (Maisie Andrews), Irita (Melody Hayward, Babybel (Sadie Groves), Sensi (Libby Dawson) and Misera (Joe Harley) together with a confident ensemble of Loella Arnold, Amelia Critchley, Beth Crosby, Charlotte Edgar, Freya Hawkins and Louise Witton.

In the Royal group Luke Morgan (Prince Charming) formed a strong singing and dancing partnership with Leah Gallagher (Cinderella). Their duet of Time Stops was confident and presented with a maturity that can only grow into the future. I was impressed by the singing and dancing of Ben Coleman (King) and Mabel Deakin (Queen). They also had a good working relationship on stage. There were some clever, and often amusing, characterisations from Zach Andrews (Dandini), Liam Wilkes (Jester/Flunkie), Reece Hall (Jester/Flunkie), Ben Mason (Heavy) and Alex Carr (Foreman). Another member whose characterisations are growing stronger every time she performs is Becky Cartwright. Her role as Princess Charming had attitude and comedy timing together with an excellent singing voice and dancing skills. They were backed up by a talented ensemble group of James Mason. Lucas Pearson, Isabelle Samuel, Courtney Thomas, Cara Warsop and Frankie Williamson.

I thought that the selection of songs was excellent and in some cases brave. I must mention the full company numbers of Masquerade and You Will Be Found. The arrangements and harmonies in these two numbers were particularly impressive. This said the singing, harmonies, dancing and acting throughout were a delight. They were backed by a professional sounding band and together with the set, costumes, lighting and sound, it proved to be a very enjoyable and entertaining evening. Thank you and well done to everyone involved!

 

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.