The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe - The Pantomime

How you can turn any Nursery Rhyme, Fairy Story or classic tale into a successful pantomime I have no idea but Dave Crump manages it regularly. I wonder if he counts up the ‘one-liners’ in the panto. They certainly came thick and fast in this one.

All the traditional panto characters were there. We have to have someone to boo and Meirion Buck had that task in the role of Baron Bootblack. He soon had us all hissing and booing. We need someone to oppose the evil and in this case it was Chiara Curtin as the genie of the Boot. There has to be someone to run onto the stage and shout hello to the audience and to get a response from them. Deb Crump did this with lots of energy as Shiny Sam. There has to be a couple who it doesn’t matter how hard they try everything goes wrong  Richard Pritcett and Charlene Walker worked well here with some well timed knockabout routines as Burt Buckle and his daughter Betty Buckle. The romance in the story was in the capable hands of Libby Allport (Alice Trellis) and Laura Harper (George Bootblack). There was plenty of additional humour provided by Lee Harper (Roughly), Brad Reynolds (Eton) Derek Harper (Arthur Minute), Stu Etherington (Farmer Furrow), Jodie Cockeram (Mrs Bun), Molly Millin (Miss Take) and the delightful Lucy Watkins (Tipton Cut). The ensemble was completed by Connie Holman, Elaine Toy, Abbey Ramsey, Victoria Mason and Jamie Norman.

Every panto needs a good dame and From the Top certainly has one in Dave Crump. He appears in various outragous outfits, minces his way around the stage, adlibs, takes on the audience and makes sure we have a good time.

The singing was confident to a sympathetic band and I certainly feel that Christmas is coming now.

Well done to everyone involved!

 

 

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