Puss in Boots

Colaton Raleigh Players is fortunate to have a well-appointed village hall with a small but comfortable auditorium.  The stage is also very small and it amazes me how they are able to organise so many scene changes.  The planning must be meticulous because at no time did a scene change slow the progression of the story.  The tabs would close and action would continue in front so that the audience would be quite unaware of the work going on behind.  The scenery and cloths were indeed a feature of this panto depicting the village, palace gardens, Ogre's castle, etc very effectively.   Act 2 opened showing the palace gardens with a fountain upstage.  This was a beautiful blue-lit scene and the water effect was created by strands of   "tinsel".  Imaginative and quite stunning.  The lighting was interesting and fun and added a great deal to the enjoyment of the evening.  Sound effects were well chosen and added much to the drama.  

Costumes had been well planned and makeup was another impressive feature.   Many of the cast required special effects.  Mother Goose was dressed, most effectively,  as a feathery Fairy Godmother with clever makeup transforming her into a goose, complete with red beak.  Puss needed to morph from a pet cat into the walking, talking saviour of Peter.  Garfield suit and gorgeous boots, plus a set of whiskers, and Puss was ready for action.  Gruesome, very much the baddy, in a frightening costume and scary makeup, needed to capture sufficient people for Crunchbones the Ogre to eat.  This was the first time on stage for this actor but that was in no way apparent.  He will be back for more. no doubt!  Queen Fanny the Fifth was resplendent in frocks suitable for a queen and stunning makeup. Crunchbones the Ogre was wearing a monster fat suit and looked very much the part.  There are so many facets to putting on a successful pantomime, or indeed performance of any kind.  There are so many people behind the scenes using their imagination and working hard to create the magic that the audience experiences.

It was clear from the various reactions during the evening that many of the cast were well known in the village and many of them had been in the pantomimes in previous years.  There was excellent rapport with the audience and the actors all performed with confidence.  The gags were handled well and the audience was drawn into the unfolding story.  What an excellent idea to combine the job song with the ghost gag.  It was particularly successful and was received with great enthusiasm.   The flourishing relationships were fun.  The love interest between Princess Miranda and Peter was very sweet.  Their ages were a good match and they looked right together.  So good to see a girl as Principal Boy.  The relationship between the Queen and Freckles was a continuing theme.   Freckles did not appear too keen, to the amusement of the audience.  So many super performances by this cast, very much in the spirit of traditional panto.  Many of us have a tendency to have fidgety feet and shuffle a little in real life.  If we do this on stage it is more noticeable and a little distracting for those watching.  There were one or two who perhaps should be aware of this for future performances.  Also banging sticks to emphasise a point is fine but be careful not to overdo this. The songs had been well chosen and were appropriate for the script. There was quite a number for the chorus and these were sung with energy and made a very pleasing sound.  Solos are more difficult in such an intimate space, it isn't easy to relax and sing out.  The actors though were able to sing strongly and present the songs well, with a wonderfully sympathetic accompaniment by the experienced Musical Director.    

The children's chorus, who were the young villagers, worked very hard in the longish first Act and then at the interval took their bows and presumably went home to bed.  They were well rehearsed and enthusiastic and had quite a lot of dialogue, and songs,  to remember.   Their diction was beautifully clear so it was easy for the audience to hear them.   Some of them have probably been in the village panto before but for some, this will be the first time.  Panto is the perfect way for young people to get the acting bug, enjoying the friendship and fabulous feeling of achievement when what they have been rehearsing for months goes before an appreciative audience

This was a long panto with many chorus songs and solos and duets.  The audience seemed happy with the length of panto but should this prove a problem at another time to have fewer songs would not harm the production.

This was a super evening of family entertainment much enjoyed by the happy audience.  Congratulations to you all.

Joyce

 

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