Jack & the Beanstalk

The origins of British Pantomime, or "Panto", date back to the middle ages, but have constantly been adapted to survive up to the present day.  Pantomime, as we know it today is a show predominantly aimed at children, based on a popular fairy tale or folk legend though the storyline is often tenuous.   

I didn’t quite know what to make of this version of Jack and the Beanstalk. In her Director’s Note Jess Wildman says “…and the script offers a few unusual twists”.  It most certainly did; with Jethro’s dream offering a scene in a western saloon complete with showgirls and a bar fight and a rather surreal “musical interlude” by Pond Life - seemingly a tribute act to West Life.  Also, I have never before seen a pantomime which opened with the Dame’s entrance.  Usually there is a lively chorus number which gets the audience settled and in the mood for the fun to come.

The main principals (I am including Buttercup the cow here) were all very proficient with several good performances.  There was a large but impressive chorus of very young WTG members who all did a splendid job.  There was no doubting their commitment and they all knew the words to songs and the moves to dances. Well done MD Laura Bryant and Choreographer Mia Turner on getting such a good performance from the young people. 

No Fairy Godmother this time but a very neat duo designated as "The Good Fairies" played by Nadia Akyddiz and Evie Street who made a very creditable job of very difficult roles.  They were on and off, helpfully keeping the story on track.  This was a very hard thing to do well, especially as their dialogue was all in rhyme.  They were clear in their delivery and looked just as fairies should. Big plaudits too should go to Aiden Meikle the Palace Footman who confidently made very clear and positive announcements.

It is always gratifying to see youth performers coming through the ranks and holding their own in a senior cast.  Bryannie Quarrie made an excellent Jack Trott giving a very talented and confident performance.  Holly Lennie too was impressive as Princess Jasmine. She commanded the stage in all her scenes and has a lovely voice. So much so I was disappointed when, in what I thought was her solo Once Upon a Time, she was joined by the king and queen and the young chorus.  I could happily have listened to her singing that alone no problem.

Being the front or back end of a cow is probably not something to put on your CV : nevertheless it must be a really hard job and not as easy as it was made to look by Abbie Turner and Sophie Jones  There was some lovely reactions and well done on dying and rising again without getting in a tangle.

Alan Marston’s Dame Trott was in the traditional mode with lots of innuendo and interaction with the audience.  I am sure Liam and Commando Nick will think twice before sitting in the front another time. They were great sports though.  Dame Trott’s hired hand Jethro (cue for the Combine Harvester song of course) played by Mark Wright and his sweetheart Mary (Caroline Baker) added to the comedy.  Mr Wright’s Jethro was a big hit with the audience who anticipated his “ooh-arr” catchphrase at every opportunity. Ms Baker I felt had a tendency to address the audience rather than her fellow thespians but there was no doubt she was a crowd-pleaser.

There was good pairing of Tim Brown and Laura Bryant as King Frederick and Queen Gladioli.  Nice empathy between these two with some well-timed miss-hearing from Queen Glad who also has an excellent voice.  

A couple of nice cameo scenes from Claire-Rose Charlton and Gemma Politt as Major Rodewerks and Private Access respectively added to the fun but, although they made the most of the opportunity, I think there was potential for more comedy to be pulled from the roles.

That’s the goodies dealt with.  Now we come to the obsequious Fleshcreep played by James Crussell who managed to emanate the nastiness of his character rather too well.  I am sure he is quite nice really.  Congratulations to Tim Meikle too on an excellent, and surprisingly manoeuvrable, Giant Blunderbuss.  Good support in the Giant’s castle came from Aiden Roe as his downtrodden housekeeper.

On the technical side Richard Stewart’s set designs were excellent and beautifully painted by Ann Sherwood and Angela Starr. It is amazing what WTG achieve on their small church hall stage.  Lighting, sound and props were all spot on and costumes were, as always, first-class. 

This was a great effort from WTG. In the words of Queen Gladioli, “What a lot of talented peasants”.

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