Cinderella - The Other Slipper

‘CINDERELLA – THE OTHER SLIPPER'

Carrie Millinger’s adaptation of the popular pantomime ‘Cinderella’ was entertaining and well-received by the audience. For her to take a leading role as well directing the pantomime was not an easy task and she coped admirably. I’ve both directed and taken a lead role in a musical and so I know just how difficult it is - congratulations to Carrie for taking on the challenge.

I believe that the cast was one of the strongest that I’ve seen over the years of reviewing your pantomimes.

The backcloth of the village was really good and Kathryn Cameron-Webb opened the show - her clear dialogue set the scene for what was to follow and I would have liked to have seen a little more of her in the production.

The characterisation of Buttons was less light hearted than the usual one - Matt Markham did well in the role.

Florence Hunter is a consummate actor and made a wonderful Cinderella. Her performance couldn’t be faulted. The duet with Buttons was enjoyable and both of them have good singing voices.

The Ugly Sisters were extremely good and worked well together to bring out the humour in their characters. Peter Cornish (Antoinette Hardup) and Carrie Millinger (Decibel Hardup) were just as they should be, OTT in every way. There were a number of occasions when they needed to ad-lib and they did it effortlessly.

James Manning was first rate as Prince Albert – he looked the part and acted well.

I especially enjoyed Chris Butler’s Dandini. He has a commanding presence and a very professional on stage presentation.

The wicked stepmother Belladonna, played by Suzi Dawes, put across her song with confidence, but I’m afraid that I had absolutely no idea what it was about! Possibly a generational thing!

The sing -along too was clearly enjoyed by the younger people present but the older members of the audience were not able to join in the fun.

Amongst the characters Carrie included in the pantomime I felt that the stepmother’s role needed more delineation, but I liked the fact that she was a potion maker – a nice twist on the original story.

Poor old Baron Hardup (Alan Saunders) aroused sympathy and Ron Millinger and Robert Hardy added to the piece in their smaller roles. I believe it was Robert Hardy who sang ‘Mr Cellophane’ and it’s not the easiest of numbers starting as it does with dialogue. He became more comfortable with the singing as the song established itself. 

The stable doors with the two girls representing horses was a nice little addition but the doors needed to be further apart as the action stage centre masked the girls, who looked lovely.

The opening of Act Two was glitzy and colourful making an attractive ballroom scene.

There was a different take on the Ghost Scene and the head peering through the tabs was amusing – was the ottoman supposed to be in the wrong place? If not then they made the most of another opportunity for a laugh.

The students from the KH Dance Academy performed the dance routines competently and the ballet ‘I loved Her First’ was absolutely delightful.

Ant and Dec’s song was good and Buttons and Cinder’s one was lovely – I liked the fact that Cinderella chose to marry Buttons instead of Prince Albert.

Costumes were generally good but I felt that Buttons missed out on the costume front. His uniform was rather dark, as were the buttons, and a much brighter costume would have been more appropriate for a pantomime. 

Sound effects were good and the lighting too.

The Riverside Theatre has a really cosy feel – the raked seating ensures that everything happening on stage can be appreciated by the audience.

Thank you for inviting me to see your pantomime – I had an enjoyable evening and look forward to seeing another of your productions later in the year.

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