Robin Hood

And so it begins! Panto season has arrived with a bang with my first one of the season being the defender of the poor, Robin Hood, sharing his story of old. Beverley Musical Theatre presented this tried and tested tale to a great number of laughs and smiles by the enthusiastic audience, which on the night I went to review the show was in abundance, with the local Scout group loving every second. I can only hope they were as well received at every performance.

One of the first things I noticed with this performance was the extremely bright and well put together costumes. They screamed panto. All cast costumes were perfect, yet simple which always works perfectly, with the highlight being the fantastically exuberant dames costumes. This provided even more entertainment when multiple layers of these outrageous costumes were used as an almost strip tease routine provided by the excellent Ian Thompson as Dame Nanna Nutkin.

The stage was well used, and scenes set out incredibly well, so background activity didn’t disturb the main story line that the audience was following. The ensemble cast acted their socks off and were focused throughout the whole performance, which added a lot to the scene ambiance at various points. The backdrops again were simple but effective. They painted a picture for the principal cast to work off and I do have to commend the stage crew for their seamless scene changes.

The dashing and debonair Robin Hood was played by the equally talented Jade Easom – Samuels who portrayed the classic panto hero to great effect. Her singing was beautiful especially when paired with the lovely vibrato of Georgia Kingston as Maid Marion, who not only starred as a principal in this show but also produced the well-rehearsed choreography. Every panto needs a baddie and, in this panto, we had a whole team. The tale of Robin Hood would not be complete without the Sherrif of Nottingham played by Russel Fallon, who when paired with the vindictive Witch Willow Wart truly created a power not to be reckoned with. This devilish team would not be complete without someone or maybe two someone’s to carry out the evil bidding. In this case we had Hapless and Hopeless played by Claire Cooper and Thomas Dubej who gave a wonderfully ‘hapless and hopeless’ team performance that couldn’t help bring a smile. Every story needs its storyteller and as with the rest of the show we didn’t just have one, but two. Fairy Flora, Melissa Kay, and Fairy Fauna, Alison White, helped move the story on with great pace so the audience were constantly engaged. The principal cast was well rounded off with the lovely Prince Arthur and Princess Ethel played by Riley Anson and Paige Grubbe who were lovely young additions and held their own against the adult performers. I have to say the true comic of the show was Mike Wells who played Will Scarlet. He held the audience exceptionally well with his great ‘Dad jokes’ that were delivered so well that the audience were compelled to laugh whether the jokes were funny or not.

For anyone wanting a kick start to the Panto season you can’t go wrong with taking a trip to see this one, with everything you would want and need from a classic panto. Beverley Musical Theatre has proven that pure and simple theatre is definitely still a viable approach to theatre. The audience loved every minute, and they should be incredibly proud of the piece of timeless theatre they have created.

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.