The Elf King

Pantomime is the perfect antidote for those cold winter days when the seasonal festivities are behind us and spring is still way over the horizon. 

We had come to the opening night of a panto written by one of NAT’s own, and stepping in from the cold the excitement and anticipation were palpable. The society is passionate about what they do and from curtain up to the final bows it was obvious that a lot of hard work had gone into the production.

This being pantomime, we all know that good will conquer evil but first the story must unfold. As the various characters appeared on stage there was more than a passing nod to some of those we know so well from the traditional fairytales.

As in any good panto we have a good fairy and a baddie.  Katherine Koster-Shadbolt made a lovely Fairy in her delicate pink dress and floral headband and Andrew McMillan as her opposite number, The Elf King displayed good confident acting and the ability to hold the attention of the audience. His plan is to get our heroine, Priscilla, well played by Alice Patten, to fall in love with him, but Priscilla is in love with Woody the woodcutter.  A good performance by Olive Higham as Woody looking every inch the principal boy. These two young people made a good pairing and their duet “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” was very nicely sung.

Then of course there was Priscilla’s faithful dog, Elvis the hound dog.  I think this must be the first time I have seen a pantomime dog make his entrance walking on his hind legs and carrying a cup of coffee. Hilarious. Amy Dunn was brilliant in this role which she really made her own.  I was concerned though when she rolled off stage.  I assume this was in the script and it was very funny, but the absence of a crash mat was a Health and Safety issue and I would be neglecting my duty as a NODA Rep if I didn’t point this out. Hopefully one was provided for the rest of the run.

Of the other principals, a good performance from Alaois McHugh as Priscilla’s stepmother and Matthew Fyleman was excellent as Hilda Wood the panto dame. Then there was Edward Dunn as Buzz who spends a lot of his time studying the clouds and Will Murray as Willie, getting more and more irritated by his walk on music “I’m a Lumberjack”, each time reminding us he’s a woodcutter. Briar (John Oglesby) and Thistle (Tracey Murray) as The Elf Kings henchmen completed the principal line-up.

There was an excellent supporting cast of adults and children and a lovely dance of the woodland animals.  Choreography throughout was good and within everyone’s capabilities, enabling even the youngest to join in enthusiastically. The pre-recorded music worked well with a good choice of songs.

My only criticism is that we did have to wait a while for the first musical number, consequently the pace took a while to pick up.  Panto is primarily for children, most of whom have a very short attention span. A rousing opening number is one of the best ways to capture their attention and hopefully keep it.  That aside, this was a lovely production.  It was well costumed with some great theatrical make-up.

Lighting was good and the sound well balanced. The cast projected well in both dialogue and vocals, enabling us to hear every word. The use of hand mics was used to enhance one or two numbers. The set was well designed and I particularly liked the woodland scenery with all the red blossom.

Congratulations to all involved and thank you for inviting me.  Yvonne Hannant can be justifiably proud of her first foray into writing a pantomime.

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.