Ok the title probably gives it away but, just in case you didn’t know, Panto Season is upon us once more, and where better to enjoy this traditional treat than at Blackpool’s Grand Theatre?
This year’s offering, Aladdin, stars Blue Peter’s Barney Harwood as Aladdin, Mark Moraghan as evil Abanazar, Philip Meeks as Widow Twankey and Lacy Jordinson as Princess Jasmine. Of course, a Grand pantomime would not be complete without panto veterans Steve Royle and Hayley Kay as Wishee Washee and The Slave of the Ring respectively.
The foyer of The Grand was packed to the rafters with excited children as we attempted to squeeze our way through to a virtually sold out auditorium and, if audience mood was anything to go by, this was going to be a fun-filled evening. As always, the anticipation was more than adequately matched by the performance, which was first class as always.
Pantomime is notorious for topical one-liners and there were certainly plenty of those, although sadly, it has to be said that some of them fell flat with many audience members. Admittedly, a couple were perhaps a little dated or obscure for some people, particularly the children, however this did nothing to detract from the fun of the evening, and the laughter at the Brexit joke almost raised the roof.
Of course, as expected, the dame, Philip Meeks as Widow Twankee, wore increasingly bizarre outfits as the show progressed and Hayley Kay as the Slave who didn’t like to have her television viewing interrupted, provided a lot of amusement. There was also the traditional lost somewhere creepy, he’s behind you, “Oh no he isn’t” scenario and a slapdash, make a lot of mess everywhere scene in the laundry – well it just wouldn’t be panto without it!
This was a fantastic fun filled show for kids of all ages (even us big ones) and a great pre or post Christmas treat for everyone.
For more information or to book tickets visit www.blackpoolgrand.co.uk
Show Comments (0)