Jack and the Beanstalk

Jack & the Beanstalk a pantomime staged by Southport Dramatic Club at Southport Little Theatre, Hoghton Street, Southport on Friday, 2nd January 2026.

‘Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum’ ...as soon as you hear those words, you just know! I think we all know the basic storyline, this version, penned locally for SDC and updated for this production, follows the ‘traditional’ storyline, with just one of two tweaks along the way. Our story starts with ‘Jill’ planning a special birthday, what could go wrong! But at the centre of everything you’ll always find a member of the ‘TROTT FAMILY’.... Dame Trott, Jack Trott and Tommy Trott! Jack’s a nice lad, with good intentions, the ‘apple’ of his mum eye, whilst Tommy’s a few cows short of a herd! They run a dairy which isn’t doing very well, so in an effort to raise some cash, they decided to sell their beloved cow Daisy. Jack takes Daisy to market, but evil forces are at large and Jack gets tricked by the ‘wicked’ Rancid, who offers him gold, but leaves him with beans! Jill is captured and along with Daisy are taken to the land of the Giant. From those ‘beans’, a ‘huge beanstalk’ grows, which everybody and anybody are up and down like a yoyo! The question is can Jack save the day, will Daisy and Jill be the Giants dinner... who knew, we all sat back and waited!

Production Team given the task of guiding us ‘up and down’ that ‘Beanstalk’ was Sian Woolley (Director), Marley Ellis-Brennan (Musical Director) and Pippa Dunnett (Choreographer). As said above, there are many versions of this tale’, all with slight variations, but always a constant is ‘The Trott Family’, a ‘Giant’, a ‘love Interest’ for Jack, the ‘sale of a cow’, usually a ‘Daisy’, a ‘good Fairy’, an ‘evil Rancid’, a ‘Beanstalk’ and always ‘a lot of fun’!  This version had all those and a cast who always looked happy, interested and involved. Direction was simple but effective; I did feel the production perhaps lacked just a little in the way of a storyline, but whatever it lacked in that department, was made up with effort and energy created by the enthusiastic cast members! Musical interludes were good, some well-chosen songs that slotted into the storyline really well.  Dance routines were original and blended well with period and the scenes involved.  Well done you three good job!

The Cast .... a relatively small cast as panto casts go... just sixteen, but having said that, what was very clear, was that everyone on stage was well rehearsed and looking like they were enjoying everything that had been thrown their way! We had some great characters created, all adding their own individual flare and contribution to the production and they included.... Charlie Geldart as ‘Jack Trott’; Sophie Walker - ‘Jill’; Craig Billington - ‘Tommy Trott’; Nathan Colman - ‘Dame Trott’; Cath Dunne - ‘Rancid’;
Emma Wells-Hall - ‘Spirit of the Beans’; Dani Capie-Witterick - ‘Holly’ and Emily Bloom and Amelie Hayes - ‘Daisy the Cow’.  Ensemble of Dancers ... Megan Ryan, Zoe Findley, Jessie Jackson, Jasmine Mullen, Maisie Francis, Katelyn Brant and Serafina Campolucci-Bordi.  Never one to sit on the fence, I’m going to select a ‘show stealer’ and a couple of favourite characters! These are MY choices, you’ll know doubt have yours, but these are mine!  ‘SHOW STEALER’ had to be Nathan Colman, who took on the role of the legendary ‘Dame Trott’.  I did think this was Nathan’s first time as ‘Dame’, but after reading his programme notes it would appear it was his third! Nathan really did take this role and make it his own. From first entrance to final bow, he created this wonderful warm character, who had an immediate connection with the audience, which is essential for any Dame.  Loved how he worked the ‘audience’, loved how he ‘sought out’ individuals and kept them involved throughout.  Great costumes, great comedic timing, worked well with all the cast especially with Jack and Tommy... well done Nathan great job!  Favourite character was another Trott... ‘Tommy Trott’ played ever so well by Craig Billington. In Craig’s programme notes he promised ‘To Be on Good Form’ and true to his word he was! Confident, assured, Craig bounced around that stage making his own instant connection with the audience. Great mannerisms, great character created, which he never lost, be proud Craig. Charlie Geldart, Cathy Dunn, Emma Wells-Hall and Dani Capie-Witterick all did great jobs with their roles as ‘Jack Trott’, ‘Rancid’, ‘Spirit of the Ring’ and ‘Holly’ respectively, which they should be ever so proud of. Can I make ‘Special Mention’ of ‘Daisy the Cow’, everyone’s favourite with Emily Bloom & Amelie Hayes therein. You could feel their chemistry from within the costume, loved the movement and those dancey type steps which were never out of sync! I had a bet with myself that Emily was the front end, just because of the way the ‘Head Tilted’ to the side, had Emily written all over it and I was right ... well done you two, well done everyone!

Tech/Staging ... was perfect, affording all the exits/entrances and freedom required for the actors and dancers to ‘do their thing’ whilst allowing the production to flow with ease!  Francesca Bate (Stage Manager), Radley Haynes, Brendan Gillow, the SDC Crew, Set Design and Construction Team should all be congratulated on their efforts. Lighting was excellent throughout!  There were a few issues with the Sound, notably when ‘The Spirit of the Ring’ and ‘Rancid’ dueted, the balance of their mikes wasn’t right... resulting in the ‘Spirit of the Ring’ completely overpowering ‘Rancid’. Both have lovely voices, would have loved to have heard them sing together. Also, at the start of Act 2, the sound changed! I felt it went a little ‘echoey’, thought it may have been to assist in some singers, but wasn’t sure! Overall, ‘Tech and Staging’ was really good and enhanced the production!

The Band ... led impressively by Marley Ellis-Brennan (Musical Director and Keys 1) in his first outing with Southport Dramatic Club. He was joined in ‘the pit’ by Tess Raynor (Keys 2), Benjamin Lawson (Guitar), Lilah-Rose Bell (Bass Guitar) and Dante Campolucci-Bordi (Drums). The sound emanating from the pit was excellent, it supported the cast throughout, never overpowering, always supporting and you could see and feel the cast were confident with their musical support!

Costumes / Props were fabulous, of the era, used well and enhanced the production ever so much! Costumes hired from Charades Theatrical Costume Hire, St Helens and overseen by the ‘SDC Wardrobe Wizards’.... congrats, enhanced the production ever so much!

‘Constructive Advice’... hope I don’t offend here or appear to be ‘teaching mum to suck eggs’... DICTION is always of benefit in theatre, especially when/where comedy is involved, even more so when ‘comedy one liners’ are to the fore! If the audience doesn’t hear or can’t understand what’s been said, then jokes are lost!  Never rush ‘one liners’ or never ‘move on’ to quickly from them... give your audience a moment to ‘get the joke’, if they don’t appear to get it, help them, not every time... but on occasions tell them that ‘This is the best joke in the panto’, spin it a little, ENCOURAGE THEM TO LAUGH, it really is your job!  ‘One-liners’ and ‘slapstick’ are the ‘meat for the bones’ of any pantomime ... having just finished my thirty- third role as Dame, I should know... but I’m still learning!

Finally, can I take this opportunity to wish everyone at Southport Dramatic Club all the best for 2026.  Thanks for inviting my wife and I to your production. Hope to see some of you at our Awards Dinner and look forward to catching up with you all again throughout the year.

Stay Safe, Keep well
“Stronger Together”

Jim Briscoe
NODA NW
District 6 Rep

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