Sleeping Beauty

This was my first visit to the Jigsaw Players Theatre Company for their annual pantomime, and it was a journey that was very much worth taking.  The familiar story of Sleeping Beauty was given here an added twist, in that Beauty’s saviour was not the arrogant, money grabbing Prince Charming but his downtrodden manservant, Felix.  This was a nice twist on the traditional tale and introduced an extra level of intrigue into what is for many people a very familiar story.  Otherwise, Jigsaw presented us with a very traditional pantomime, brilliantly delivered to provide a great evening for young and old.  Oh yes they did! 

The show was performed over two weekends with, amazingly, almost completely different casts!  This is a fantastic achievement in itself (I am overwhelmed just thinking about the logistical and practical challenges).  On the night I attended, ‘Team Extravaganza’ were on stage, and they were certainly well named!  ‘Team Rosetta’ were performing the following weekend, and seeing how well Jigsaw Theatre operate, I am sure that they were equally as good as their counterparts.

There were, I think, just two performers who had the same roles in both ‘Extravaganza’ and ‘Rosetta’ – Molly Gilday as Raify and Stephen Levett as Edna Extravaganza.  It was easy to see why.  They both gave excellent performances, full of energy and exactly the right panto spirit.  Molly is clearly a talent, with natural charm and vivacity to spare (not to mention a wonderful local accent), and she easily carried the audience along with her as she led the show from the first minute.  And Stephen was every inch the panto Dame, in a performance that was little short of a masterclass in how to play this role.  They were the strong foundations on which the show was built. 

Molly Webster was a sweet and confident Rosetta, the titular sleeping beauty, and was well complemented by Nathan Levett as Felix, who used his strong singing voice to good effect.  Jude Capewell and Henry Dealaselle were very funny as the incompetent security guards Billy and Benny – clearly taking their inspiration from the likes of Dick and Dom (or the Chuckle Brothers, depending on your vintage).  As the bad guys, Laura Baron (Poison Ivy) and Glyn Diggett (Prince Geoffrey) secured the requisite boos and hisses! 

These principals were supported by a large ensemble, including a very cute and well-rehearsed junior chorus.  Each and every one of them played their part in delivering a great performance for the audience, and they should all feel very proud of their efforts.  A small team of four dancers (plus a junior dance chorus) provided some very nicely performed interludes, although I did wonder whether these could have been integrated into the story a bit more? 

The whole show was performed with a great deal of energy and vigour, and was firmly aimed at the younger members of the audience, who reciprocated with glee!  My congratulations to director Maggie Bishton and her team.  All of the panto requisites were present and correct, with a good smattering of corny jokes (well done to the sound team for synchronising their badum-tish!) and comedy routines (I’m pinching the ‘If I Were Not in Pantomime’ skit – very clever!)  The ensemble also performed a number of entertaining group songs – ‘Another Day of Sun’ was a particular highlight for me. 

This was quite a long show, with a lot of songs, particularly towards the end, by which time I felt a bit pummelled into submission – engulfed by a panto avalanche (in a good way!)  Adding to this impression was the volume – it was quite loud!  I realise the need to balance the singers with the recorded music, but I am not sure that the radio mics were needed for dialogue, particularly in a venue of this size.  It meant that, when the actors (quite reasonably) raised their voices, they were very loud!  I felt that this meant that the audience couldn’t get involved quite so much, as our contributions were somewhat drowned out.

There was no set to speak of, the show being delivered against a black backdrop on a tiny stage – in itself no mean feat given the number of people involved.  However, the lack of scenery meant that the location of the action was sometimes unclear, and I wondered if at least a few bits of scenery could have been incorporated?  When we did get some scenery – at Poison Ivy’s castle – it had a positive impact.  The cast were well costumed, particularly the Dame who had an impressive array of outfits, and sound and lighting were dealt with well – the timing of the former being especially well managed.  I’d also like to commend the backstage team – marshalling all those people through such a tiny space must have been quite the challenge! 

My congratulations to all at Jigsaw Players for a thoroughly entertaining evening.  It was wonderful to see a group keeping the flame of traditional pantomime burning so brightly.  Well done.  Thanks for inviting me, and I look forward to seeing you all again soon. 

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