Strictly Come Panto

Earlier this month I attended a performance of “Footloose” and suggested that, as the plot revolved around a ban on the activity, it should perhaps be titled “Strictly no Dancing”.  By way of a complete contrast, here we have a tribute in pantomime form to a TV favourite which brings dance to our living rooms for several weeks of the year and has done since 2004.

The writer, Mark Ellison, who, I am told, has never seen any edition of the TV programme, has again mixed together a reasonable story, some fairly elderly but quite suitable songs to which he has added new words and a decent load of laughs to form an enjoyable production. The owners of Riley-Smith Farm need to enter a dance competition with some substantial prize money in order to pay their somewhat crippling taxes. It’s “Strictly” meets “the Archers” if you like. The problem is that their most likely candidate, Billy Gumboot, is out of the Ann Widdecombe/John Sargeant mould (the song “Two left feet” is about him) whilst the organisers of the competition, the pedially-challenged (she has enormous feet) Queen Stiletto and her would-be consort, Lord Cornplaster, badly want to win it themselves. Help comes from Brucie, now a guardian angel, some magic shoe polish and Puss in Boots, who just happened to answer an advertisement on the farm gate concerning a matter of rodent control.  Together with another estranged pantomime character, Goody Two Shoes, a winning combination is formed and the magic polish is enough to allow Billy and his partner Melissa to claim second prize.  Not only that but Goody turns out to be the sister of the Queen, long since thought dead and, followingni the latter’s conviction for her misdeeds, assumes the role in an end-of-show coronation.

The Director draws some excellent performances from the cast: Andy Lloyd enjoys himself again as the Dame (Billy’s mother, Nelly, “the old woman who lives in a welly”), whilst Beverley Fletcher and Peter Fletcher succeed in earning a number of catcalls with their every entry as the villains. Gordon Fawcett made an extremely realistic Brucie and took charge of a very funny “Generation Game”, with prizes reflecting hard times at the B.B.C., whilst his wife Jane gave us the necessary twirl as Anthea. Linsey Fone made a good Claudia at the “Strictly” contest and, this being pantomime, I have no problem with the role of Tess being played by a man, Philip Nicholls. The part of Billy, the sort of village idiot (e.g. Buttons, Wishee Washee, Idle Jack etc.) which is usually retained by a man was on this occasion well played with a constant and quite natural smile (and wellies) by Catherine Marshall. The cast is completed by a couple henchmen to the Queen, nicely played by Jo Hawkins and Tamsyn Chadwick, a shoe-maker (Tim Smithers), a sheepless shepherdess (Violet Bell) not to mention judges in the dance contest, villagers, farmhands and a number of mice and elves from the Company’s Junior section. The four-piece Band gave good support throughout. Backcloths as scenery may be a little out of favour these days but here they certainly created just the right atmosphere be it farmyard, palace or cobbler’s shop.                            

This was another highly successful production which certainly lived up to its description as “a traditional family panto”.  Unusually for this genre, there were few, if any, references to local traders, TV personalities or, indeed, the forthcoming election.  For the latter at least we were all quite grateful!         

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