ROBIN HOOD

 What a fun afternoon – two shows, two different kids casts, and I didn’t mind watching it again as it was such a good pantomime!

I am not normally in favour of the Director taking a principal role, but in this case I must say Tim Hayden accomplished both extremely well.  I enjoyed the fact that it was a traditional panto, with some nods to the present day, plenty of audience participation and a general upbeat feel to both performances.

The use of Griffins back cloths made this again traditional, but everything was seamless, no real blackouts, and some imaginative lighting made it all seem fresh.  I particularly liked the lighting during the Sherriff’s number, but every lighting plot was well-considered and enhanced the production.

I liked the costumes, it was nice to see some different ones, but they all looked good and fitted well, were colourful too.  I liked the finale costumes, some of which I think I’d seen before, but again they came out fresh!

Musically there were some different numbers from Chris Burrett, a new MD to Griffins, which in the main were kept short and snappy, and I liked the integration of songs we knew and those that weren’t so familiar.  Everyone looked as if they were enjoying singing them and the accompanying choreography from Kate Johnson was challenging with assistance from Kyra, there was some armography, which was really well-drilled, as well as movement to keep everyone on their toes.  A good collaboration of music and movement.

Both Junior ensembles gave their all, lovely to see a variety of ages, and the adult cast’s children as well, makes it so much more inclusive to have family on stage as well as in the audience.  From the eldest to the smallest, they all performed so well, lovely smiles, and they kept up well with the dance numbers too.  Very well done.

Alex Currie (Robin Hood) gave us a light but engaging character, who sang well, I liked his numbers with Madison-May Orchard (Maid Marion), they interacted well, and Madison was a lively Marion, I liked her portrayal.

Tim Hayden (Nanny Flapjack), gave us a great Dame, in the best traditions of panto, loud, brash and fun – which set the bar for everyone else, and to be fair they all stepped up to achieve their best.  Luke Murphy (Silly Willy) was all he should be and the name suggested, I loved him performing CPR on Ian the seagull – these little things go to make the whole full of interest.

Paul Ramsey (Sheriff of Nottingham) was very evil, we loved booing him, and he got good interaction with the audience, despite being nasty, with Mel Ramsey (Deputy Scratch) squaring up well to her uncaring boss.  A good pairing.

Lorna Trapp (Alan-a-Dale) took on a different part for her, but definitely made it her own, good facial expressions and very lively.

Cheryl Desborough (Sherwood Sprite) was so good, a move away from the typical good fairy, but Cheryl has the voice and adaptability to make it work, again good expressive delivery.

The final principal was Ben Jaggers (King Richard), a small but essential part – Ben always brings the right feel to the parts he plays, gravitas in this case, but I did notice he added to the fun as he was central to the correct path of Robin’s arrow! 

It was great to see some familiar faces in the adult ensemble, and they certainly performed to their utmost.

All in all a fun but very well-executed production, you should be proud of the show you put on, we really enjoyed it, and it was nice to catch up with some amdram colleagues too.

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