REVIEW: Aladdin St. Helens Theatre Royal
 |
| Cast of Aladdin |
Written by Liam Mellor and directed by Chantelle Nolan, the show was delivered to a packed audience of excited children and adults alike. The panto runs from the 3rd December until the 8th January. It's a magical carpet ride and a sparkling adventure as we enter the cave of wonders with Aladdin and Princess Jasmine. The story of Aladdin is a popular tale and a famous pantomime. This production was fun and richly colourful in every sense of the word.
Amy Childs plays the slave of the ring. The TOWIE star was joined by her cousin Harry Derbidge who played PC Noodle (with the extraordinarily wide trousers). The duo used the language that was characteristic of the BAFTA award winning show, so prepare to hear lots of "Babe", "Reem", "Well Jel" and "Shut Up" At one point, Amy Childs even talks about offering the queen a vagazzle! Warren Donnelly plays the convincing villain Abanazar and Simon Foster is the hilarious Widow Twankey. I was expecting a few more original innuendos from his character aimed at the more mature members of the audience. That said, he was hilarious in his portrayal as Aladdin's mother.
X-Factor finalist David Heath played the role of Aladdin and sang solo and performed duets with his love interest Olivia Sloyan who played Princess Jasmine. Whilst his performance of "Can't stop the feeling" was a tad pitchy, his vocals were good on the whole. Olivia Sloyan played a fabulous Jasmine. She captured the essence of the princess and collaborated well with Heath.
The costumes were spectacular and the colour and dazzle was a feast for the eyes. Congratulations to the creative team. The set was fantastic, the Cave of wonders was my particular favourite. The choreography was great and the dance teams comprised of young male and female dancers deserve a special mention. They were excellent and worthy of commendation.
Ben Engelen who plays Wishee Washee is a firm favourite of mine as I have seen him in many productions. He has such a buoyant disposition and endears himself to the audience regardless of their age. My favourite scenes were when the cast sang a rendition of Alesha Dixon's "The boy does nothing". I also loved the scene where Abanasa and PC Noodle had a sing off. I was in hysterics, the drama and humour was magnificent. Harry Derbige was particularly brilliant in this scene.
Expect to giggle at the jokes meant for adults and expect to see your little ones giggle hysterically as they are soaked with water as the cast run into the audience. The show was light-hearted and humorous, a welcome treat over the festive season. If you are looking for an escape and a reason to smile over the next few weeks, the only way is St Helens this Christmas season.
Cast:
Slave of the ring: Amy Childs
PC Noodle: Harry Derbidge
Abanazar: Warren Donnelly
Widow Twankey: Simon Foster
Genie of the lamp: Josh Bennett
Aladdin: David Heath
Wishee Washee: Ben Engelen
Jasmine: Olivia Sloyan
Run Time : Sat 3 Dec 2016 - Sun 8 Jan 2017
Get your tickets here
Comments
Post a Comment