Dick Whittington

Warmly welcomed by the front of house, I was ushered into the bar and awaited my meeting with Andrew, the director, who extended his good wishes and requested we remain to meet the cast later. A refurbished and (purpose) rebuilt theatre, it was gratifying to see it almost full.

Greeted with a relatively simple set which worked very well, the changes as they were, were slick and without much fuss. Well lit and with good  sound too, the diction was clear and could be heard well above the three-piece band offset stage left.

In true fashion the pantomime started, and we were introduced to a motley cast of characters ably led by Sophie Johnson as Dick, Daniel Shepherd, very boo worthy as King Rat, and the sweet and innocent Hayley Clines as Bow Bells, all three confident and audible.

Michael Ayres played the dame, Sarah the Cook, and seemed to be enjoying the role too, as was fairly evident. I liked the enthusiasm, it rubs off well!

The cast and chorus were well-drilled by Andrew Hamel Cooke and the choreography (Samantha Potten) was well performed and, in the main, all in time too! Again like Sarah the Cook, the chorus and associated cast (too many to mention) were really enthusiastic and this came across well, helping the audience to a very good evening's entertainment.

Overall a really enjoyable evening, and well worth the drive to see it. Well done Andrew and well done Nomads.

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