Pinocchio

Pinocchio is one of those stories sitting just outside the core of the pantomime canon; there are occasional productions, but they are not particularly common. In this case the writing had been well done and on the whole was cohesive and flowed really well.

Pinocchio play by Martha Lily Eley gave a confident performance with good stage presence and clear diction.

Marco played by Toby Stockton gave a fine performance, combining well-timed delivery,  and interacting well with the audience. Sofia played by Angharad Sommerin gave a good performance as the principal girl, her singing was sweet and clear, excellent vocals. 

Mamma Macaroni played by Nigel Lewis gave a strong performance and wowed us with a number of different and eccentric frocks and great exaggerated mannerisms.

Romeo played by Paul Mellin gave a strong performance and had the job of ‘Panto idiot’. Good comic timing and worked the audience well.

Stromboli played by Darren Edwards was convincing as the evil puppet master who relished getting  booed and jeered. Geppeto played by Matthew Lee gave a strong performance and maintained his Italian personality throughout.

Le Ranard played by Iain Mullet was suitably chilling and unpleasant, alongside his bungling assistant Le Chat, well-played here by Sally Mathias.  Their antics and comical facial expressions keeping the audience well entertained!

Fairy Bluebell played by Harriet Taylor was very well acted and her clear voice kept us on top of the magical side of the plot. Jiminy Cricket play by Abbie Hopkins turned in a great performance as the green-faced protector.

I particularly like the scene where the toys came to life.

Costumes were bright and colourful, scenery was multifunctional which worked well. Lighting supplied by Lightsource Production Services worked well with both costumes and scenery.

Congratulations on a very enjoyable panto and look forward to seeing you all in 2019.

 

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