Puss in Boots

The opening music and front cloth gave way to the first scene, set in an Italian town piazza. Backed with a star cloth, and with a central truck representing Mama Gelato's Ice Cream Parlour and side flats representing other buildings, this was a vibrant opening scene. Later, the central truck was rotated and ingeniously opened up to show the interior of the ice cream parlour. Later scenes were created using some trees for the woods, complete with an upstage 'stream'. The Ogre's castle in Act 2 was quite Gothic in appearance which suited the character well, but the addition of some chequered multi-coloured bunting transformed it at the end of the show for a fitting finale. Scene changes were carried out very efficiently

The opening number brought a very colourful chorus onto the stage. Singing to the tune of 'One brick at a time', with the words changed to 'One step at a time', we soon realised that this was a feature of this show, with new lyrics written to some familiar (and some less familiar!) songs. Every song had original lyrics, and I must applaud the ingenuity needed to write these lyrics, together with the immense amount of learning of the new words by the cast. At times this worked very well, particularly in the comedy songs; however at other times, particularly when there were a lot of voices on stage, it was not possible to understand what was being sung due to unclear diction. Many of the songs may have had more impact if they had been shorter, which would have made it easier for the audience (particularly the children) to follow the lyrics, and therefore the story. The singing was however very tuneful and confident.

Pre-recorded music was used and this was well timed and at a good volume which never drowned out the voices. The machine noise early in Act 1 which turned into the riff for 'We will rock you' was very clever and well performed. Sound effects were minimal and worked well, but I would have liked more accompanying percussion for the physical comedy eg. the slaps and falls. Lighting was excellent with some nice moving lights, and pyrotechnics were well cued. The lighting changes during the transformation scenes were well timed.

Choreography was simple and generally performed with enthusiasm, although at times there seemed to be some uncertainty during the routines. The 'pitch perfect' style ice-cream tub routine was performed well and it was a shame that the hands of the performers at the right-hand end of the bench were hidden behind the pile of spare tubs, which lessened the impact of this routine.

There were some clever and entertaining moments. The money counting gag in Act 1 was performed well and could have been even better if done faster. The transformation scene of the cat, using the crate and a trap door in the stage was very clever and I doubt many of the children in the audience would have worked out how it was done; such is the magic of pantomime! The killer rabbits worked very hard and created some good characters, with the little one managing to steal most of the scenes he appeared in! There were issues with pace which could have been aided by characters entering and exiting at a faster rate, together with picking up cues a little faster. Entrances were not always well blocked, for example the King, Queen and Princess entered facing upstage and in a line blocking each other, so that we could not see or hear them properly until they moved, later in the scene.

Costumes were colourful and well fitting throughout, with an admirable attention to detail. The junior chorus were mostly dressed in lovely red and white dresses, with the Ogre's maids in blue. Throughout Act One I was unsure as to why the junior chorus were not all dressed the same, and it only became clear that some were maids in the castle later in Act 2. Likewise, I was confused by the Major Domo's outfit throughout the show until it became clear which character she was later on. Whilst I appreciate the budgetary restraints, it was a shame that the servants were not dressed like the villagers until they needed to become the servants. The Killer Rabbits were beautifully turned out in pinstripe suits, fedoras with ears and rabbit's feet, and their sparkly finale jackets were super. I loved the steampunk outfit worn by the female henchman, and Puss's pink and purple outfit was lovely - with thigh-high purple suede boots to die for! All the Principals were suitably dressed, although Kelly's outfit looked a little too grand considering the Princess asked why he was dressed so poorly.

Make up was excellent, in particular Puss's face and whiskers, and that of the rabbits.  The dame was suitably over-the-top with a couple of very colourful wigs and some fluttery eyelashes, and Puss's ears, styled from her own hair, were a nice touch. 
One of the best things about amateur pantomimes is to experience just what can be achieved with teamwork, and to witness how the young and old in the cast can support one another and learn from each other, and this was certainly in evidence in this production. How lovely it is to see young performers who originated in the junior chorus now able to take on Principal roles.

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