Jack and the Beanstalk

JACK AND THE BEANSTALK ... a pantomime presented by Chorley Amateur Dramatic & Operatic Society (CADOS) at Chorley Theatre, Dole Lane, Chorley on Friday 20th December, 2024

‘Fe Fi Fo Fum’... when you hear those famous words, you just know what’s to come next.  This adaptation of this classic English fairytale was penned by CADOS’s very own Paul Carr.  Jack, a poor country boy, trades the family pet cow for a handful of magic beans, much to the dismay of his mother. That night, the beans grow into a massive, towering beanstalk reaching up into the clouds. Jack climbs the beanstalk and finds himself in the castle of an unfriendly giant ... this is a hilariously exciting adventure that includes romance and we may well bump into a giant or two....  

Production Team… Rebecca Dickinson (Director), Cara Jones (Choreographer), Paul Carr (Musical Director) and Lindsey Lynch (Producer) ... did a great job with this script which, as stated previously, was penned by our MD Paul Carr.  The production Team had gathered together a great cast who were well rehearsed and from the beginning looked up for the challenges that lay ahead.  We had some fabulous characters created, who were all ready to give us their all. They all worked really well together, looked happy and engaged from the off.  Cara had created some simple yet effective choreography that suited all concerned especially our teams of Junior and Seniors Dancers who formed the ensemble and who supported the ‘principals’ really well!  The success of the production was down to some great individual performances, but also to the entire cast coming together as one showing great energy and enthusiasm.   Be very proud you four great job!

 

The Cast ... an enthusiastic cast of twenty-eight took to the stage with not a weak link in sight. They included ten principals, ten Junior Dancers and eight Senior Dancers all of whom did a great job with the family orientated pantomime and what a great job they did. The cast included Robert Walsh as ‘Jack’; Kate Grayson as ‘Jill’; Ryan Norse as ‘Dame Nellie Trott’; Jade Hiatt as ‘Seraphina’; Steph Threlfall as ‘Silly Willie’; Katie Potter and Natalie Howarth as ‘Sneak’ and ‘Snoop’ respectively; Alan Levesley as the ‘Giant’ and finally Kath Townsend and Rebecca Townsend who played both ends of ‘Daisy the Cow’. Our Junior and Senior Dancers included... Beatrice Lynch, Elijah Latham, Eloise Driscoll, Isabella Unsworth, Jemima Hardy, Lucy Carr, Marnie Hodge, Olivia Alice, Sienna Taylor and Tiffany Martland (Juniors) and Annabel Lynch, Darcie Wilcock, Delilah Jones, Ebony Bleakley, Grace Dolan, Hermione Jones, Rebecca Fulop, Scarlett Woods (Seniors). As you know, I’m never one to ‘sit on the fence’ so, if I may, let me identify MY ‘showstealer’ who was Ryan Norse our panto Dame ... ‘Dame Nellie Trott’.  Ryan did a fabulous job with this role. Confident, energy driven, spot on comic timing, blessed with a great singing voice, a perfect fit for this role. Ryan worked ever so well with all the cast but as important, if not more important he had this instant rapport with the audience.  If a Dames role is to work and work it did, the banter/connection between character and audience is vital ... this felt real and authentic... be very proud Ryan great job sir!  From ‘showstealer’ to ‘shout out’ ... and my first ‘shout out’ goes to our ‘Comedy Duo’ ... ‘Sneak’ and ‘Snoop’ played with great aplomb by Katie Potter and Natalie Howarth respectively. Two wonderful comedy characters who just bounced off each other throughout. Confident, creative, spot-on comic timing, they made these roles look far easier than they undoubtedly were. Loved the chemistry between them, loved the interaction with both cast and audience... their rendition of ‘Kentucky Fried Chicken and a Pizza Hut’ was hilarious, be ever so proud you two, fabulous job!  Next, we had our two leads ‘Jack and Jill’ played really well by Robert Walsh and Kate Grayson. Confident, two more good characters created, two more that worked ever so well together and were perfect fits for their roles. Finally, we had ‘Silly Willy’ (the name says everything) ... another amusing character played by Steph Threlfall. Steph was another with ‘spot on’ comic timing, and that worked ever so well with both cast and audience and reaped the rewards. Loved the rendition of ‘We Buy Any Car. Com’ another hilarious song enjoyed by everyone.  Fabulous cast... no real weak link, all worked really well together and created a great panto...that they should all be ever so proud of!

Set/Staging/Tech… once again, CADOS pulled out all the stops... super set, fabulous projection, amazing tricks which were sometimes “literally” shocking ... especially when the ‘chicken exploded’, I think the entire theatre left their seats for a few seconds. The ‘projected/speaking’ ‘Giant’ was amazing ... ‘tech genius’ at its best! Overseeing everything on stage we had Lindsey Lynch (Stage Manager) and her crew with Stephen Irish, David Emmett, Jo Callander, Rosie Galloway, Stephen Clipston, Sophie Clipston and Olivia Gillett. The ’set’ was constructed and painted by the Chorley Set Building/Painting Teams ... too many to identify individually, but who should be congratulated on their efforts. As always here at Chorley Theatre, the ‘Lighting’ and ‘Sound’ were first class ... being overseen by Paul Carr (Lighting & Sound Design) with ‘Technical Support’ and ‘Operation’ by Ben Holden, Ella Green, Ellie Brookfield, Myah Brookfield, Mason Carr, Thomas Bramhall and Harry Smith... great jobs one and all.

Costumes … don’t think I can start talking costumes without bringing to everyone’s attention, that this was the ‘final show’ being costumed by the ‘legend’ that is Sandra Dickinson. After twenty-one years Sandra has decided it’s time to ‘hang up’ her needle and thread.  After costuming 140 shows, Sandra bows out having made another ninety-six fabulous costumes for this pantomime. I’ve seen some of her fabulous costumes over the years... none better than those on show today... have a great rest Sandra, I’m 99.9% sure, people may well pop round and ask ... is there any chance... you are amazing ... be ever so proud of what you’ve helped achieve here at Chorley Theatre over the years ... you will be missed for sure!  Costumes were fabulous and enhanced the show ever so much!

Props... were again ‘first class’ and used well ... under the watchful eye of Lindsey Lynch and Rebecca Dickinson.

Chaperones ... I always make a point of recognising these ‘selfless people’ without who, young people would not be allowed to perform on stage... they included ... Cara Ellen Jones, Hazel Lynch, Rebecca Hobkirk, Ruth Quaglieri-Woods, Keiron Fulop, Gillian Fulop, Kayleigh Martland and Kellie Gillett.

In the programme CADOS recognise the loss of one of their family ... ANDY BURKE who passed away in 2024.  Andy is described as a ‘Classy Panto Dame’ who created much joy and laughter for thousands of young children and adults alike and forged huge friendships within the society... RIP Andy from myself and all at NODA.

Thank you so much for inviting my wife and I... we really did enjoy the pantomime, hope you all had a fabulous Christmas and can’t wait to see you all again in 2025.

Stay safe, keep well…
‘Stronger Together’

Jim Briscoe
NODA NW
District 6 Rep

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