Robin Hood and the Babes in the Wood

Ben Crocker’s script of Robin Hood and the Babes in the Wood combines two well known traditional stories into a single Pantomime, but the result is a curious blend that does not quite fit together logically, has a running time at least thirty minutes too long and I felt an unsatisfactory narrative flow. His usual scripts provide plenty of good material for the cast to work with and there were some interesting elements like frequently throwing sweets to feed the poor and the audience bombarding the stage with woollen stones but overall, the final product seemed very slow paced and laboured with several scenes that could have been cut without being missed.

The CAST members worked hard to breathe some life into the action in a very good set with attractive pastel backcloths and some good music choices. The school scene is usually an opportunity for some classic jokes and although the bench business was well done the material about pork pies and an unfathomable maths calculation was far too long and unfunny despite their efforts. The slosh scene too was slow and weak although the business with the door was done well.

Of course, the real judge of any show like this is the audience reaction and the Beaver Squirrels in the front four rows certainly seemed to enjoy it and one of two gave those on stage quite a hard time with the persistent shout outs and interactions. As with any amateur show if the cast on stage enjoy themselves and the audience respond vocally to their efforts it is a success . The CAST cast certainly seemed to be having fun and that is all that really matters.

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