People were queuing out of the door and down the Pavilion Theatre steps on Monday night as I arrived to see this year’s pantomime, Aladdin. It was great to see such a full auditorium on a weeknight and one before schools broke up for the Christmas holiday. We grabbed a programme, drink and sweets and settled down just as the 2 minute call was announced.
The wicked Abanazar, played by Mark Wingett, opened the show and set the scene for the story to unfold and it was within minutes that he had the audience booing and jeering at his evil laughter. We were then introduced to the other main principals. The Dame, Rob Forknall was hilarious, with extra long fluttery eye-lashes which we could see clearly even at the back of the theatre. Alex Winters from CBeebies plays Wishee Washee and was immediately recognised by many of the little children who screamed and cheered for him. They split the audience in two sections and made us all shout louder and louder, but they picked out one poor man who wasn’t participating enough and made him stand up and shout “go Twankey” by himself and then we all sang happy birthday to the people who were called out. It was a great way to start the show!
I thought the choreography was brilliant and the glamorous dancers really brightened up the show with their costumes. The younger dancers also had beautiful and colourful costumes. I especially liked that the principals joined in many of the song and dance routines as this added energy to the performance. The use of lighting was carefully crafted and when it was used with the scenery that glittered in the light, it was beautiful. I thought that the bright lights that flashed into the audience, blinding us momentarily to then reveal the genie was a really clever way to make his appearance magical. The live orchestra were fantastic and I loved the choice of music in the panto as the tunes got everyone clapping and singing along. However, I did think every now and again that the orchestra drowned out some of the soloists and this made it difficult to understand what they were singing, especially when the song told a story about the plot or Abanazar’s scheming plans.
On the whole, I really enjoyed this pantomime and it was nice to see something that involved the whole audience no matter what their age. There were a few slip ups, but that can only be expected in a live show. It was hilarious when at one point Widow Twankey lost her wig. I can only say that I thought the cast dealt with any mistakes very professionally. It was a brilliant evening and I really enjoyed myself especially when the entire audience stood and danced in the aisles during the finale!
