Puss in Boots

As I sat waiting for the show to begin I noticed the strips of fairy lights hanging from the side walls of the auditorium.  Straight away it made me feel part of the audience.   The show was colourful and lively, with a great many fun aspects which one comes to expect from a panto.

During the first chorus song I noted that the band were slightly too loud.  I felt that a small adjustment was needed so that the performers were able to be heard. 

The backdrop during the first scene on the Village Green was a bit bland.  The rest of the backdrops in the show were stunning, which just served to emphasise the bland first one.

I really appreciated the traditional panto comedy which this production contained.  I particularly noticed that from the start there were children in the audience who were belly-laughing at particular characters and scenes, which is always a lovely sound.

I enjoyed the variety of music in the show and overall the songs were performed competently. 

I loved the UV ballet.  It was well thought out and well executed, if a little short – I wanted more!  Similarly, towards the end of the show the mouse appeared only briefly, I felt more could have been made of that.

I enjoyed Elyssa Dean’s Fairy Aurora – she made sense of the rhyming lines she was saying, rather than delivering just the rhythm.  The song she sang was very pretty. 

Andrew Frost as Ogre Hardcast gave a solid performance.  I liked the mask and the way he sounded.  He had the stature necessary to make the character intimidating.

Graham Duncan as the Town Crier commanded the stage well.

Jeff Hammond’s Dame Hermione was extremely enjoyable.  He had good interaction with the audience and the other characters.  His portrayal was funny and put me very much at ease. 

Rosie Hinwood’s portrayal of Maisie was a confident performance which I very much enjoyed. 

Carly McHugh gave a solid performance as Colin.  Her stature and air of confidence was just right for the part.

Ian Ellis-Hall’s King Oliphant was good – I would have liked to have seen him slightly frailer and more of a “bumbling” character.

I really appreciated David Cousins’ portrayal of Chancellor Dullbody, but felt that he could have made more of the caricature he created.  The caricature was exactly right for the part, especially given the name of the character, but I wanted more!

Mary Kenealy as Princess Coral was lovely.  The little girl sitting to my left was enchanted by her – that says it all really!

I enjoyed Scott Welch’s portrayal of Trip immensely.  He had lots of energy and his cheekiness came across to the audience well. 

Maya Das’s Puss in Boots was the stand out performance for me, I enjoyed her singing and her speaking voice which both flowed with confidence and flair.

Daniel Stride played Sprat very competently.

The Herald was exceptional – I was impressed with his stage presence and the awareness of the balance between times when he was on show and times when it was necessary to blend into the background.

I was pleased to see a large chorus, full of talented performers, reacting well to the action. 

I enjoyed the performances by the Jason kids – they were well choreographed and performed competently.  It was so lovely to see a tap dance routine.

In summary, as outlined above, I felt that there were aspects of the show that could have had more energy and there were character traits and effects that needed more embellishment.  That said, I was able to relax and enjoy this pantomime - it was very entertaining and funny.

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