Rapunzel

What a fabulous romp through the Quiffdom of Centre-Parting with Dinnington Operatic Society in their production of the Tom Whalley Pantomime, Rapunzel.  The wonderful ‘Once Upon A Time’ opening perfectly set the scene for the rest of this fun and pacey production.  Courtney Smith was a delight as the trainee fairy ‘Fairy Dandruff’ desperate to earn her wings and to see good overcome evil.  Samantha Smedley showed her talents as a great character actress easily transitioning from the ‘old lady’ Mother Gothel to the ‘younger and more wicked’ version determined to maintain her powers by keeping poor Rapunzel locked in a tower.   Mark Wareing was the archetypal, jolly pantomime King, with his secret yearning for the Dame and his willingness to change wigs at a pace that almost matched his ‘love interest’.  Supporting the King was Joanne Thornewell as Gerald the Herald (real name Dawn) doing some excellent horn solos and ensuring everyone was clear when the King was arriving.

The title character was played by Sophie Keady who together with Kim Stead as Prince Ryder made an impressive, if sometimes quirky, duo.  Ryder wasn’t your typical Panto Prince, even the thigh slapping seemed to cause the character discomfort and Rapunzel was the first Panto Princess I’ve seen brandishing a frying pan at every juncture.  However, together they made the perfect couple.  With great ease and connectivity with each other as well as with the audience they sang and danced their way through the show and won over the audience both young and old.  Both had wonderful voices and it was no surprise that the musical numbers featured many opportunities to show off the great vocals.  There were lots of openings in the show to use a range of songs and Director, Louise Selden and Musical Director, Jonathan Wilby, had picked a cross-section of genres to appeal to all ages and tastes – a really great selection.

The audience definitely had their favourites on stage with Johnny Green as Dame Fanny Follicle and Ashley Booker as ‘her’ son Pascal who were both were ready to please their fans.   This fabulous duo has a wonderful chemistry together and the audience really adore them – well except poor audience member Ben – who was mercilessly teased by Dame Fanny including being dragged into an appearance on stage.  Green and Booker have excellent timing which means that the many rather racy references in the script are perfectly delivered to hit the adults, but sail over the heads of children who are enraptured with their physicality and wonderful hilarious audience interaction.  There was great work in the Salon Scene and also on the panto bench – with the on theme giant nit!  Having regular and familiar elements to a show allows the community to really feel part of it and Dinnington have done a wonderful job of giving their audience the very best experience.   I think some audience members must spend the intervening 12 months coming up with weird and wonderful animals to live on Old McDonalds Farm (the audience participation song).  However, Booker is never one to be caught lacking and be it sloth, termite or even worm he can find a way to show his skills at ‘acting through song’.

The costumes were perfect for the show and it was super to see that the Society went for a full company  wardrobe for the beautiful silver and pink finale.   The set was excellent with a purpose-built tower for Rapunzel to ‘let down her long hair’ - this well-made set piece had been built inhouse and together with the mid-stage clothes which swung in for scene changes helped to create a wonderful performance space for both cast and chorus.  The lively ensemble were enthusiastic both in their dancing and singing whilst looking great as the village entourage.   Their routines had been choreographed by Society Choreographer, Kirstie Turnbull, who also wove in some lovely movement for the principals.  Further dancing was added to the production by dancers from the Julie Turner Stage Academy.  These dancers were in perfect time and looked fabulous in their matching costumes.  It was also great to see the more senior members of the team working well with the youngest and tiniest dancers. 

Lighting and sound was sharp and great use was made of the auditorium space for one of the Prince’s entrances. Set was swiftly moved by both crew and cast to support the excellent pace throughout the production.  Well done to the Society for including a relaxed performance.  During which the performers engaged wonderfully with the audience and ensured everyone could have a great night.

Huge congratulations to everyone involved on stage, backstage and front of house – Rapunzel was a super panto and really showed the talents of all involved.

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