Cinderella

Thank you, Lowestoft Players, for the lovely reception you gave me at Cinderella. I was looking forward to seeing the show and how it was going to be portrayed slightly different to the normal. The audience were waiting eagerly for the show to start and everyone was getting very excited.

Cinderella (Bethan Roscoe) had a lovely approach to the character played, not so naïve and this suited the role. Buttons (Alexander Bracey) had style and attitude which was fun. I liked him being down with the kids and both had a lovely friendship on stage together Detox (Chris Tanton-Willis) and Botox (Hannah Lucas) both had good rapport that bounced off each other, with comedy timing and humour. Baroness Heifer Hardup (Emily Simpson) was very sassy and evil all in one, very cleverly done. Fairy Godmother (Paula Crisp) was suitably strong in the role. Baron Horace Hardup (Peter Simmens) played the simpering dad well. Prince Charlie Charming (Hazel Cole) was adequate in the role and with Dandini (Frankie Brown), his sidekick formed a befitting duo in the traditional storyline. The chorus added to the pantomime atmosphere with their charisma and grace and the children had a really great time with bubbly smiles and personality.

The stage was well used and executed to its full potential. Different levels were used throughout, but I would say be careful of side lines, a couple of times some of the cast and crew were seen, maybe when they shouldn’t be. For a classic story like Cinderella, I felt all the appropriate typical pantomime scenes were put into the story accurately and the ghost gag and slipper gag all worked well. The jokes were well delivered by everyone throughout. I did feel the messy scene could have been a bit more wild, I thought it was quite tame for panto. I like the principal boy take in the show, girls playing the Prince and Dandini. I loved the audience participation throughout. The birds in the wood scene for me was slightly too loud. It became quite distracting as I couldn’t hear some of the cast’s dialogue but I did enjoy the children playing the roles of the animals in the same scene. The transformation scene was very cleverly done, well staged and slick.

I felt some of the songs were apt for the storyline and everyone sang to the best of their ability but I did feel that again the music was sometimes too loud. The choreography was in-keeping for the show and worked well. I very much enjoyed the ballet at the ball. This was very funny.

Props were very well produced and fittingly used. Ther carriage was beautiful and elegant. I liked the fact the clock moved as it was getting nearer to midnight. If you are going to give drinks out at the ball, please think about having actual fluid in them.The scenery looked very colourful and bright. I liked the staircase at the ball and how it was used by the cast. I am sorry that the scene change out of the ‘messy scene’ was slightly late but everyone coped well to try and disguise it. Well done. Lighting has the right ambiance for the plot and I liked the added touch of the extra glitter balls for the Fairy. Costumes were apt for the era vibrant and full of colour. I liked the village scene costumes and that the ugly sisters matched in style. The ball gowns were beautiful for Cinderella and the chorus.

A lovely show and a thoroughly enjoyable evening.   

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