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Stars explained: * A production of no real merit
with failings in all areas. ** A production showing evidence of not
enough time or effort, or even talent, and which never breathes any real
life into the piece – or a show lumbered with a terrible script. *** A
good enjoyable show which might have some small flaws but has largely
achieved what it set out to do.**** An excellent show which shows a
great deal of work and stage craft with no noticeable or major
flaws.***** A four star show which has found that extra bit of magic
which lifts theatre to another plane. |
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Love triangle: Ross Shaw as Jack, Rachel Louise Pickard as Principal Girl, Red Riding Hood and Sionainn Kavanagh as Principal Boy (I know, but work with me on this . . .) Prince Alexander. Pictures: Roy Palmer. Little Red Riding Hood
Hall Green Little Theatre
*** THE Brothers Grimm’s version of Little
Red Riding Hood is . . . well grim, a dark talefull of grannycide and
dead wolves, which is not a charge you could lay at the door of Hall
Green’s festive version. Fun, daft and corny, is
the order of the day here. This is a sort of panto combo plate with
three little pigs (without the pigs of course) meets Scarlet Hood, call
me Red, the caped crusader; a Prince nicked from some dark gothic
werewolf tale as a garnish and, of course, that traditional fairytale
regular, a wicked witch with a chlorophyll complexion, supplying the
party with boos. And if you have an evil (hiss and boo) witch, in
this case played with dastardly delight by Charlotte Crowe you need a
balancing good, or in this case Wood Fairy, played with sparkly staff by
Emily Beaton. Then instead of three little pigs we have three
builders in the village house building contest with houses of straw,
wood and finally brick . . . sound familiar? Knocking up the straw
beach hut is Sandy Beach played with some style by Katherine Williams,
dudes, who keeps up a consistent Aussie accent, sport, encouraging a
surfing moment with the Be But as every wolf, and by now every pig, knows
you can’t blow a brick house down and so it proves with the house built
by the no-nonsense Arthur Brick (groan) played by James Weetman.
Ross Shaw meanwhile is our wimpy, lovesick hero
Jack who courts disaster every time he tries to court a girl and seems
to take more of a battering from friends than enemies, or wolf as the
enemy is known in this neck of Hall Green. And Jack Heath is that wolf; paws, claws and
fangs revelling in the boos from an audience packed with beavers, cubs,
brownies, scouts and other assorted youngsters who were up for it from
the off so much so you suspect the bar and box office staff were
probably booed or cheered, depending upon mood, as the audience came in. When it came to cast v audience the kids won
hands down, or screams up to be more honest. The likes of Daniel
Robert Beaton as the dame, Miss Unders Hood (think about it and you will
understand
it) find their job of developing audience participation made much easier
when the kid are shouting behind you,
oh no he isn’t, booing
and cheering
on cue as soon as the curtain rises as if they
have been at rehearsals. Beaton’s “you can do better than that”
encouragement only served to raise the volume to levels that would give
any self-respecting Health and Safety official apoplexy. Love interest comes in the form of Red herself,
played by Rachael Louise Pickard who helps to hold the show together as
the caped crusader protecting the village from the evils of the world,
or at least Hall Green, such as wolves and dubious princes. The dubious prince in
this case being Alexander Meanwhile with love in
the air, or fir in this case, we have Jack’s dad Carl Cutter Lumber, the
lumber jack who has a secret romance from the past coming back to haunt,
sorry, delight
him.
Then there is Rooney The Reindeer, played by Ryan Alan Dunn according to the programme - although I suspect not all four legs were his own. Rooney, who can talk
with a series of nods and hoof taps, adds a sort of festive air to
proceedings. Amid this motley collection from fairyland we have the
prince fan club who scream every time his name is mentioned and who also
double up as villagers and chorus for musical numbers including
Hey Jude and
a drift into Queen territory with We
are the Champions and
Don’t stop me now.
We even had a burst of
Yakety Sax
for a chase sequence for those who remember Benny Hill. Music of course being helped tremendously by the
magical fingers and keyboard of Geddes Cureton with Roy Palmer on
percussion, Palmer also being co-director, co-lighting designer and
production photographer. A couple of unscheduled pauses gave the audience,
or at least the ears of adults, a brief respite but, be warned, the
production will pick up pace and become slicker now the first night is
out of the way. The plot is daft, a bit woolly, or wolfy in this
case and the jokes are old (what do you expect? This is panto!) but the
kids loved it, and that is what it is all about. To 19-12-15. Roger Clarke
11-12-15. |
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ach
Boys 
,
played traditional principal boy, slap your thigh, style by Sionainn
Kavanagh, although is the prince really what he . . . she . . . says he
. . . she is - a principal boy? Is it