Cinderella

This was the second SDC pantomime I had been to and, like last year’s, it had a wonderful celebratory feel and joie-de-vivre, achieved through hard work, teamwork, energy and everything working together. The direction and choreography were assured and tight, the performers pulled out all the stops, keeping the pace up throughout so that the audience’s attention was held. I was particularly impressed by the way the Dance Choreography ensured that each time the dancing ensemble was on stage, they changed sides during the number so that all members of the audience had a good view of each of them. It was engaging right from the start, with the villagers kicking off with One Short Day with no instrumental lead-in, just launching straight into the first word of the song, to the curtain call which was done swiftly and efficiently, achieving its purpose with no unnecessary, prolonged business. The audience responded really well right from the start, and throughout.

The set design and painting were impressive too, with a delightful back-drop of trees, hills and house, and then later the kitchen, and the carriage to take Cinderella to the ball received a well-earned round of applause. Special effects like the puffs of smoke for the entrances of the Fairy Godmother added to the enjoyment and the sound mic/amplification system gave good volume and clarity for the singing. The music was really well chosen, fitting the action and story perfectly, and I thoroughly enjoyed the snatch of Spartacus (used as the romantic theme tune to The Onedin Line) when Cinderalla’s and Prince Charming’s eyes met.

Congratulations to the Wardrobe team, the costumes were superb! The fancy dress ball was a highlight, as were the animal costumes worn by the children and the multitude of outfits worn by Samantha and Ella Hardup (the ‘Ugly Sisters’), who must have had a lot of quick-changing to do – well done!

Acting, singing and dancing performances were very strong across the board. Buttons was delightfully smiley and was very good in showing both how smitten he was with Cinders and how shy and awkward he felt. Baron Hardup was extremely well-played; not an easy thing to achieve as the character is so pathetic, but he really gained the sympathy of the audience and did a good line in being put-upon. Victoria Jones, in addition to being Director and Choreographer, also played Dandini, with lots of energy, a playfully dry line in humour, and a very good singing voice, as shown in the ‘Footloose’ duet with Prince Charming. The Prince also acted and sang very well, with some excellent pantomime thigh-slapping and striking of classic principal boy poses, and the ‘Holding My Hand’ duet with Cinderella was a real highlight of the evening. The Fairy Godmother exuded charm and had both strong projection and an excellent singing voice, as shown in the song One Moment In Time. Cinderella also acted charming very well and sang superbly. In the song My House, for example, the character’s feelings came across powerfully, and there was striking surge of emotion with the key change.

The ’Ugly Sisters’ were played to perfection – a wonderful double-act and very, very strong individual performances with gusto galore, panache, clever improvisation and amusing pantomime interactions between themselves and with the audience. There was plenty of comedy and pantomime business throughout, especially in the second half which ramped things up a gear, to which the audience responded enthusiastically and that in turn boosted the actors’ performances. When Baroness Hardup locked Cinders in a cupboard the audience became genuinely upset and booed her loudly. Later on when Baron Hardup mentioned that he has a third daughter, they were very quick to shout out ‘she’s in the cupboard!’. Dandini’s pulling a very long sock off Ella’s leg was a lovely bit of business and I enjoyed the corny one-liners such as the Baron’s comment after the Baroness has told him four times that she hates him: ‘that’s four hates, so that makes 32’.

The Ensemble performed really well and had clearly been expertly directed. The line-dancing song 5,6,7,8 was a great number and the singing and dancing at the fancy dress ball which opened the second half were a triumph. The rousing rendition of Don’t Stop Believing at the end was the perfect way to end this thoroughly delightful and enjoyable performance. Well done to everyone involved and thank you for a great evening.

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