Mother Goose

On arrival, I was made to feel immediately very welcome with warm greetings and generous hospitality. There was a lively, friendly atmosphere on this opening night that permeated throughout the venue. It was busy in the auditorium and few, if any, seats remained vacant. This promised to be a good family show with music and humour to appeal to both children and adults and, as people took to their seats, I observed how popular Harlequin Pantomimes are with the local community and beyond. It promised to be a good evening and indeed it was, great entertainment.

Director, Alf Rai had again drawn on his extensive experience to bring this timeless tale to life using imaginative ideas and securing necessary pace and high energy in  scenes.  Key roles were suitably cast with some talented performers, who commanded the stage and effortlessly showcased their versatility and artistic qualities. Interactions between characters were spirited, animated and upbeat and this was transmitted to the audience whose engagement and participation was maintained, as the story moved along. Ongoing rapport with the audience was mostly generated by Silly Billy and Mother Goose, whose characters were well positioned to do this. Alf Rai is to be congratulated on his direction of the hardworking principals and supporting cast. This included local children, for whom this would have been an incredible experience. The dancers were well rehearsed and had clearly worked tremendously hard for musical numbers, including, ‘Fabulous Baby,’ and, ‘Thriller,’ which were sharp with exacting moves. They did the choreographer, (Lisa Farmer) proud. The dancers really enjoyed themselves it transpired. They were confident in these musical numbers, including the dancers who tapped out the, ’We’re in the Money,’ routine faultlessly.  Special mention to Lisa for inspiring Dave Callaghan and Matt Wirtz, (who played Bill and Ben, the Bailiffs, respectively, )to tap dance, though because of a back injury, it was disappointing that just Matt  tapped the well-practised routine.

Mother Goose was a complete theatrical experience, for it had all the elements of theatre: drama, dance, comedy, and music. The Musical Director was the very gifted Rob Murray who orchestrated all musical numbers and enhanced the quality of singing from the vocalists.  Rob also needs to be congratulated for his contributions to the choice of musical arrangements as well as leading the 3-piece band, whilst also playing the keyboard. This ensured every song; every musical number and every timely sound effect was played live during every performance.

Use of vivid colour notably added to the overall vibrancy and magic of this pantomime and was reflected in the impressive ‘Story book’ scenery and props; bright costumes and wigs; and creative lighting design, including the ribbon ‘dance,’ with pink rippling effect

This was a classic rag to riches story. Set in the village of Goosingham it tells the story of a woman, Mother Goose played by Paul Bowman, who was struggling to pay sky-high rent to her landlord, the Squire (David Ball), who wants to evict her. The Squire engages bailiffs to collect her rent. Along comes Priscilla the Goose (Dawn Corfield) who lays golden eggs for Mother Goose. Mother Goose doesn’t know that Fairy Friendship (Natalie Maynard) has sent her to help Mother Goose who is now rich because of the golden eggs but she is now also desperate to recover her youthful looks because she wants to be young and beautiful. Demon Discontent (Ellie Farmer) tempts Mother Goose to give her Priscilla in exchange for a visit to,’ The Pool of Beauty.’ She gives her Priscilla and enters the pool, emerging as she thinks, a beautiful woman. The story concludes with Mother Goose returning to the village of Goosingham with the realisation that beauty is not everything and problems in the village need attention as well as a desperate need to get Priscilla back. Her daughter, Jill, (Meghan Tabner) and Colin, (Alex Jeffreys) were under threat from Demon Discontent, who was wreaking havoc and unrest in the village, and both needed support from Mother Goose, on whom they depended on. However, as in all pantomimes, a happy ending for all was quickly achieved with a little help and magic from Fairy Friendship and intervention from Queen Goosegog (Emily Cox) and Queen Mother (Tania Keirle) Priscilla was returned to Mother Goose with stability and happiness restored  in the village, with the Squire adopting a very different, even affectionate, approach to Mother Goose.

Commitment from each member of the cast was strong. Paul Bowman, who was on stage for most of the time, characterised his central role as Mother Goose with natural ease, assisted by countless imaginative, flamboyant dresses. His singing voice wasn’t his best feature, but his comedic timing, his banter with the audience and interactions with other characters was genius in this title role. He performed with a charm and a wit that held appeal for all ages in the audience. The goose that laid the golden eggs was an active role played well by Dawn Corfield. She was dependent on physical movements of the head and body to express responses and Dawn did this most effectively with the help of a ’quacklike’ whistle. James Collins was magnificent as Silly Billy, connecting with the audience with boundless energy and confidence. He had unfaltering stage presence, amazing voice projection and oozed with charisma in this kind of part, which seemed natural and one that he is well accustomed with. Meghan Tabner gave a thoroughly delightful performance as Jill with heartwarming vocals. Alex Jeffreys’ delivery of the part of Colin was fitting and well matched with Jill. David Ball brought his portrayal as The Squire to life with conviction. Ellie Farmer was brilliant in the menacing role of Demon Discount, a force of energy that brought vampish glee as the Demon Discount preyed on her victims. Her performances in Act 2 were dynamic and demonstrated strong vocals. Natalie Maynard was majestic and dazzled us with her cool presence as Fairy Friendship. In role as Bailiffs, Bill Bumpkin, (Dave ‘Cal ‘Callaghan) and Ben Bogtrotter (Matt Wirtz) were impressive song and dance performers who generated lots of fun on the stage. Queen Goosegog was ably played by Emily Cox and the role of Queen Mother was carried well by Tania Keirle.

There were a few notable highlights, this includes one musical performance which included slapstick, delivered, and reenacted by characters who in turn sang the tune beginning with, ‘If I wasn’t in panto this is what I would do…” This would have demanded much rehearsal for the team involved and tight coordination, for without accurate timing and fluidity the outcome would have fallen flat. It didn’t and it was much enjoyed.

Congratulations to director, Alf Rai and the rest of the production team, the splendid cast not forgetting  the vital support from the backstage crew. The successful performance was much appreciated judging by the loud applause at the end of the story; well deserved!

Thank you for inviting me.

 

 

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