Red Riding Hood

Not only had Samantha Harvey written, directed and choreographed  this her version of Red Riding Hood; she had also assisted with production, costumes and set painting.   Indeed, as Steve Parks told me,  she had lived and breathed this show non-stop.  All credit must go to her for her total dedication to the production.

Deben  Players  have also been working  closely with ‘Project 21’  an Ipswich based charity,  changing the lives of people with Down’s Syndrome and giving them the opportunity to be involved with the production, both onstage, behind the scenes and also in the audience.  It was evident that they certainly have a passion for performing and giving them confidence in their various roles.

This traditional family Panto was full of all the usual characters  we all know and love, and included  all the usual ‘its behind you’ and slapstick comedy  scenes.  Samantha had also included plenty of  humorous one liner jokes, and a cleverly written scene using the names of  popular confectionery  incorporated into the humour, keeping the audience on their toes to appreciate all the double meanings. 

 The Dame played by Simon Dodwell, a role which he has obviously performed  many times before,  gave  a good and confident performance. He  worked well communicating with his audience  and adlibbing in helping out,  to get both himself and others on stage out of trouble, when things went not quite as planned and to cover first night nerves. It was also lovely to see him working with his young son Jack Dodwell who played the cheeky little squirrel ‘Nibbles’,  who kept pinching his bag of nuts.   Wicked Wander the evil witch played by Debbie Osborne and  Fairy Fate (Alli Sparrow-Hewitt) were both well portrayed  in their characters  and in getting the audience behind them, cheering and booing.  I particularly liked the song  by  Fairy Fate of “We like to Boogie” which she performed with the junior chorus,  all in their ‘onesie’  sleep suits, portraying little animals.  Red Riding Hood played by Annabel Kimber along with her two girlfriends Goldilocks (Jess Robertson) and Mary Contrary (Victoria Ramsay) were played by relatively young performers and   gave us a modern take on their characters.  The experience gained will stand them in good stead for hopefully a long and rewarding career on the amateur stage.  Tom Thurlow played ‘Stupid Stu’, he was confident  in his role communicating with the audience and sidekick to the dame. Allan Rogers played the evil Sir Percy and was later revealed to also be the Wolf.  Dominic Swain was Prince Felix, with Sam Osborne as Sir Sebastian,  and the comedy duo of Stinky and Winky, (Andy Kimber and David Cranwell); all did well in their roles. The senior and junior chorus were enthusiastic with plenty of energy.   There were all involved in  many choreographed  songs, a particularly good one being  “Shake Rattle & Roll”  with Red Riding Hood, the Dame and Stu.

The set was particularly effective with the different scenes  on six triangular side flats which were moved in unison  by some of the senior chorus,  in an attempt to maintain  the pace of the production. The woodland scenery was very  intricate and  well painted.  The costumes were all good including the Dame’s numerous  colourful dresses.  A small criticism would be, that the sound levels in some instances were not as good as they could have been, but no doubt this will be improved during the course of the run. 

Well done to The Deben Players for giving us and the audience a very enjoyable evening.  Wishing you all well for the remainder of your run,  right through till 29th December.  A special mention and thanks must go to Steve Parks for his hospitality and warm welcome; it was a pleasure to meet you.  Happy Christmas to you all with your family,  as well as your Panto family.

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