Snow White - Virgin on the Run!

Especially re-written for big boys and girls, this adult version of the family pantomime gave us many laughs and reasons to involve ourselves in audience participation.

I felt at times the script was a little too explicit, but the cast delivered their lines with pace, and didn’t seem fazed by what they were saying!  That said, the audience enjoyed themselves, and there were plenty of laughs, groans (at the old jokes) and audience participation.

The scenery was very good, we didn’t lose the flow of action during scene changes, and lighting helped with the atmosphere throughout.  The direction and choreography were suitable for the production and the abilities of the cast.

I liked the very upmarket Storyteller as played by Judy Palmer, she injected a note of sanity, which was needed at times.

There were times when over-characterisation from a couple of actors made hearing the words difficult, and also where backing tracks were a little too loud, but overall sound and projection were good.

I loved Tracey Chatterley’s Wicked Queen – for her first panto outing Tracey really gave it her all, and appeared to love to be hated!  Great costume as well.  I particularly enjoyed her dying scene – it was very nicely handled and fun.

The dwarves did not stretch to 7, but I liked their diverse characters.  The 7Up joke was a favourite!!  The blow up dolls occasionally seemed to have a life of their own, which was also quite amusing.

Sophie Venn was a fetching Snow White, she got lots of innuendo and naughty bits into her portrayal, I liked her wig, and thought it suited her face.

Janet Bray was a dashing Prince Albert, Janet seems to thrive on these parts where she can bring comedy and humour to bear – another fun portrayal.

Emily Venn gave us several characters, all of which I enjoyed, and she endeavoured to give us a different mode of speech and look for each one. The Huntsman was a particular favourite!

Rory White is always good at the comedy aspects, he got some good interaction with the Dame, to whom he was a good foil..

Jack Glendenning played the Dame, I enjoyed his naughtiness, but was a little perturbed at times by his high-pitched singing voice.

Rachael Horsler completed the line-up as the Mirror – I liked her approach to the part, a real jobsworth! 

Perhaps not the most slick of productions, but enjoyable with plenty of laughs and audience participation, which is what panto is all about. 

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