Jack and the Beanstalk. To 21 January.
Nottingham.
JACK AND THE BEANSTALK
by Kenneth Alan Taylor.
Nottingham Playhouse To 21 January 2006.
Mon – Sat 7.30pm, mats 2.30 except 2nd, 9th, 16th, 27th Dec, 2nd, 5th, 6th, 9th, 12th, 13th, 16th, 20th Jan. No performance 26 Dec.
Audio-described 14 Dec 2.30, 7.30 16th Dec 7.30, 4 Jan 2.30, 10 Jan 2.30, 12 Jan (7.30).
BSL Signed 12 Dec 2.30, 13 Dec 7.30, 15th Dec 7.30.
Runs 2hr 45min. Two intervals.
TICKETS: 0115 9419419.
www.nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk
Review: Jen Mitchell 26 November 2005.
Traditional pantomime's alive and kicking in Nottingham. Another triumph from the Playhouse panto team who manage year after year to produce a wonderful Christmas production.
This year sees the departure of Kenneth Alan Taylor from the stage as the pantomime dame and he is sadly missed, not because Jeffrey Longmore (Dame Daisy Durden) is any less entertaining, but Taylor has become legendary and the fame of his dames has reached epic proportions.
The playhouse sticks to its guns and we have no soap stars or minor celebrities to boost tickets sales. Taylor prefers to spend the budget on costumes and set design believing reputation is enough to bring in the crowds. And if the opening night is anything to go by, this year will see another sell out run for the panto.
Returning to a female principal boy this year, Jack (Francesca Ellis) is thigh-slappingly appealing to all audience members. Our villain is a pretty impressive giant. John Elkington as the giant’s sidekick Slurp, is also villainously convincing; however, we are all relieved when he turns over his new leaf to join forced with the goodies. Elkington is another familiar face in Nottingham, in this his seventh season and he can read the audience and play them brilliantly.
One of the joys of the Playhouse pantomimes is the familiarity of many of the cast, both to the audience and each other. The repartee between themselves and the audience is fast and funny, the audience are included in all the jokes – no ‘in-jokes’ for the cast in these productions.
The teams of young people who make up the chorus deserve a particular mention, their dance routines are highly-polished and professional and the big choral numbers fantastic.
Mark Walters’ set is sumptuous – plenty of glitter and glamour, his costumes are all that you would expect in panto and more – Dame Daisy Durden’s gowns are something to behold, becoming increasingly spectacular as the evening wears on.
While ever the team at Nottingham Playhouse keep coming up with the goods, Pantomime in these parts, will long continue to be one of the very best of Christmas traditions.
The Enchantress: Claire Maurer.
Buttercup: Claire Lever and Mark Whiteley.
Danny: Lee Thorburn.
Annie: Rebecca Little.
Jack: Francesca Ellis.
Slurp: John Elkington.
Dame Daisy Durden: Jeffrey Longmore.
Mrs Blunderbore: Claire Maurer.
Giant Blunderbore: Mark Whiteley.
Clarice: Claire Lever.
Chorus:
Red Team:
Elizabeth Bickley, Jessica Haigh, Emily Johnson, Justine Lee, Ellena Self, Sarah Sharman, Sophie Thorpe, Tamara Tracey.
Blue Team:
Katie Armstrong, Charlotte Cox, Alex Green, Charlotte Griffin, Lindsey Hardie, Rebecca Mayfield, Katie Newman, Eleanor Thomas.
Reserve: Francesca Prusinski.
Director: Kenneth Alan Taylor.
Designer/Costume: Mark Walters.
Musical Director: John Morton.
Choreographer: Adele Parry.
Lighting: Jason Taylor.
Sound: Adam McCready.
Design assistant: Dinah England.
2005-11-29 10:56:20