Mother Goose

Right from the outset of this pantomime the audience knew they were in for a treat.

The large group opened the production in the village square with ‘The Best Song Ever ’where the full company performed the intricate choreography with enthusiasm.  This undoubtedly set the tone for the varied musical numbers that had been cleverly incorporated throughout.

There are so many areas that the production team and behind the scenes must be congratulated upon , from the projected scenery to the complete reworking  of the script but most of all for me were the amazing costumes , Wow to find out these were designed and made in house , superb !

But on to the stars of the show, the kids.

Lord Alan Treacle’s entourage, the members of the council and the villagers all had key supporting roles and I have to add everyone looked like they were enjoying themselves and appeared very well rehearsed.

All the named characters were played to an excellent standard without exception but I would like to mention –The Fairy Godmother played by Deb Allen , I loved the use of her selfie stick  as an alternative to a wand ,she also  engaged with the audience throughout .Maddie Beebee who owned her role as the town crier and also Kieran Banner who was word perfect as the Golden Goose a demanding role as he also needed to articulate the neck of the bird, in time to the musical numbers not easy whilst remembering lines also impressed.

My gaze was drawn to Jess Neill as Samuels (the jeweller) whenever she appeared on the stage.

Rosie Smith as Karen and Ben Farmer who played Joey Essex-Goose sang ‘Thinking Out Loud’ Rosie has a lovely tone to her voice.

Saving the best until last, James Harriman as Mother Goose must be a star in the making, his comedic timing and stage presence was superb throughout and he even needed to adlib on the evening I attended, a task in itself very well done.

Most memorable for me ‘Birdhouse in your soul’, ‘Cold as Ice’, ‘It Sucks To be me ‘and of course the finale ‘Shine ‘

Thank you for inviting me to step in at the last minute to review, and your hospitality. My husband and I had a really enjoyable evening, oh yes we did! What a great feel good production. 

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