Last Saturday, was the glittering debut of Nottingham Playhouse’s Christmas pantomime, ‘Sleeping Beauty’. Actors included Maddie Harper as Princess Rosalind, John Elkington as Dame Nurse Tilly, Tim Frater as the court jester – all with previous careers on the stage. The play certainly kept audiences entertained and it’s not hard to see why there was a full house!
The performance contained many of the classic tropes of British panto. With the melodramatic Dame arguably the top performance, providing steady humour throughout. Also including the excellent and sassy villain, Maleficent (Toyin Ayedun-Alase). The principal boy, Prince Alexander (Louise Dalton) and the principal girl, the sweet Princess Rosalind (Maddie Harper). Of course, slapstick was implemented throughout the performance, as well as some memorable dirty jokes: “you’ve broken your bottom – there’s a big crack in it!”. Although the classic panto horse was missing, it was replaced by giant rabbits dancing (but they were a bit creepy!).
The music was a standout feature; the opening included the Jester singing a clean version of Black Eyed Peas ‘I Gotta Feeling’, they also sung other contemporary songs including Taylor Swift’s ‘You Need to Calm Down’. These songs were a great addition to the panto, giving it a musical air and a modern twist; appealing to the younger people in the audience.
This Sleeping Beauty was geared towards children and their families, but I did manage to locate some uni-age students in the crowd who seemed to be enjoying it too. Towards the end the cast invited some children up on stage which was adorable! Elkington ensured this moment wasn’t too cheesy by savagely mocking the parents!
Glitter was everywhere, from the dresses to the sets. The outfits were vibrant and the gowns on the women were beautiful. The dancing was also very well choreographed, going hand-in-hand with the modern music. At one point they made the audience repeat an action-based song which was a bit embarrassing, but everyone joined in without cynicism, which created a fun atmosphere and a strong reminder of why panto is still so popular in Britain at Christmas.
I had never gone to the Nottingham Playhouse before and I was pleasantly surprised by its appearance and location. It’s in Wellington Circus, quite tucked away but still very central. Only a five minute walk from Old Market Square, just past Las Iguanas. In fact during the twenty minute interval we were able to nip to maccies and back with time to spare before the acting begun again! The venue is quite small but decorated with lights, with a large bar and three floors for plenty of performances to be held. I would definitely recommend at least going to the Playhouse once before finishing uni. They also sell cheaper tickets for us broke students which is a bonus.
Overall, I would highly recommend going to see Sleeping Beauty, the cast managed to make a rather dull fairytale come to life with modern music, dancing and great acting. It’s especially worth seeing if you have younger nieces, nephews, brothers or sisters. It’s clear that Christmas panto is still fully alive and well!
Sleeping Beauty is on until 11th January 2020
Rating: 4/5