Snow White

Joe had written this Panto which was the first time SODS had performed one of his scripts. He was also making his directorial debut with great back-up from Karen Long, herself being an experienced director with SODS. The script was loosely based on the traditional story which had been brought right up to date with a conflicting mix of the modern attitudes of the younger generation. There was some good comedy and I particularly liked the crime scene, an amusing idea which worked well.

Charlotte Lamb is Ciri who helps to warm up the audience in this her fairy communicator role. She was a full of life character with plenty of energy in her rainbow themed costumes.  The three other fairies were Jo Jones, Samantha Finn and Jess Marsh, each with their own differing yet confident personalities, especially from Jo as her experience shone through.  Paul Eggleston was Chloe, in this his first role as Dame. Callum Limer played Major Lee, Chloe’s love interest as they both injected good measures of humour  into their roles. Callum also contributed some amusing physical comedy, with good timing and a funny ‘John Cleese’ walk.

My stand out performance of the night was by Lynda Phillips, as she excellently portrayed the evil Desdemona, clearly getting as much enjoyment from it as she did in a previous similar role in Weird Sisters. She looked fabulous in her impressive costume and with her wild purple hair adding to the effect. She was accompanied by her two ‘henchmen’ Sid Downe and Stan Dup (good names there from Joe!) played by Rosa Ledden and Sharon Preece. Two very strong and mischievous comedy characters  as they try to follow Desdemona’s instructions  but  fail dismally.

Finally we have the Princess, Talia played by Imogen Whomes in a quiet but modernly opinionated way, with the script written of a teenage child who felt she wasn’t understood and who preferred to stay in her bedroom. A story I’m sure a lot of parents can relate to today.  However, then in the traditional way, along comes  Nick (the Prince in disguise), a  happy and very believable character played by Mark Littlewood who saves the day, falling in love with the Princess and awakening her from her deep sleep with a kiss.

There were some strong musical performances from all these main characters with terrific support from the ensemble especially in the party scenes, delivering excellent, lively and energetic performances.  This was helped by a good choice of songs, well sung, and with some great dance routines. Included in the ensemble were several younger faces who had come up through the Junior SODS and delivered clear sparks of confidence in their performances. They will certainly be ones to look out for in the future. This proves the point that youth groups are so essential to amateur theatre, ensuring a constant stream of younger members who have the confidence to gather more experience in the adult group. Well done to those leaders of the Youth Groups concerned, your efforts were most apparent.

There were some excellent traditional Panto costumes,  and a mix of more modern dress as depicted by the script.  The main set looked good with props being brought on, some in quite an amusing way.  Shame about the problem with the lighting which I hope you were able to adjust for the remaining performances.  

Finally, well done to Joe for putting a new spin on this traditional tale albeit a distance away from what many may have expected and was well supported in this by all his cast and crew. They gave us and the appreciative audience an entertaining evening. Thank you as always to Peter for looking after us so well.

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