REVIEW: MORIARTY’S GAME ★★★
‘Professor James Moriarty invites you to celebrate the finest minds of London by solving his cryptic challenge, which he has personally prepared. Your goal is to find his safe house. Succeed and he will present you with an offer you won’t refuse.’ And with an offer like that, how could I refuse the chance to […]
REVIEW: DICK WHITTINGTON (Milton Keynes Theatre) ★★★★
This years pantomime at Milton Keynes theatre made headline news last week, when Stacey Soloman floated in on her bubble, apparently reading her lines off of a clipboard for the first performance. But apart from that, was she any good in her panto debut? I went along to find out! Dick Whittington has heard that […]
REVIEW: LOVE’S LABOUR’S LOST AND MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING (Theatre Royal Haymarket) ★★★★
This double-bill by the Royal Shakespeare Company will delight everybody who prefers their Shakespeare play “as it was meant to be” starting with the lavish stage design by Simon Higlett reminiscent of the interior shots of Downton Abbey, a replica of the Elizabethan manor at Charlecote Park, just outside Stratford-upon-Avon. The production also features beautiful […]
REVIEW: CINDERELLA (London Palladium) ★★★★★
You shall go to the ball (oh yes you shall)! Once considered the home of panto, after a 30 year break, the London Palladium finally opens its gates to the traditional Christmas celebrations again. The anticipated comeback is lead by a star-studded cast with Lee Mead as Prince Charming, Paul O’Grady as the Evil Stepmother, […]
REVIEW: RICKY WHITTINGTON AND HIS CAT (New Diorama Theatre) ★★★★★
The purpose of any good pantomime is to imbue audiences with a sense of comfort, good humour and seasonal cheer. So how about one that plunges its audience into a socio-political satire dripping with painful truths? Astonishingly, Ricky Whittington & His Cat, the newest work from comedy powerhouse Fight in the Dog, manages to mix […]
REVIEW: POTTED PANTO (Garrick Theatre) ★★★★
As the audience files into the Garrick Theatre, the auditorium buzzes with festive cheer. There are seasonal jumpers being paraded through the aisles and children are bouncing in their seats, watching the stage with anticipation. I jovial gentleman leaps from the wings and down the stairs, greeting ticket holders and shaking hands. As he gets […]
REVIEW: THE ADVENTURES OF DICK (Leicester Square Theatre) ★★★★
‘Tis the season for outlandish and exciting pantomimes, and what better way to enhance your tired-out, classic idea of what a panto is than to thrust (literally) your way into a new way of looking at one? If you haven’t been to an adult panto before then you’re seriously missing out on what Cilla would […]
REVIEW: SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS (New Victoria Theatre) ★★★
Last night, after an early evening of trying to overcome the latest train strike and the interminable weather, I finally arrived back home to a warm and cozy fireplace only to be told that we were heading straight out again… This time “Hey Ho” off to Woking we go, to watch the New Victoria Theatre’s […]
REVIEW: MOTHER GOOSE (Wilton’s Music Hall) ★★★
Mother Goose may be one of the most traditional pantomines but it must be said that it isn’t one that has stood the test of time. While most theatres are wheeling out the big hitters this time of year such as Cinderella and Snow White, Wilton’s Music Hall picked a tale that is as steeped […]
REVIEW: Ferris & Milnes – Christmas Cracker (Ambassadors Theatre) ★★★
I first saw Ferris and Milnes in June this year when they performed 31 West End musicals in under ten minutes at West End Live. After being delighted throughout, I was very much looking forward to their festive West End debut at the Ambassador’s Theatre and am happy to say that, musically, the duo did […]