Panto round-up
From icBirmingham


It's that time of year again, as theatres and venues fill with men dressed as women, women dressed as men, and calls of "behind you!"

So here is our guide to pantomimes and festive productions across the region ...

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<small>[ 11 December 2003, 01:59 AM: Message edited by: Stuart Sweeney ]</small>

A fizzier Wiz than usual
Dominic Cavendish for The Daily Telegraph reviews The Wizard of Oz at the Birmingham Rep.


If the BBC has its ghastly way, and installs large outdoor screens in our city centres, then - who knows - maybe the Christmas treats of the future will consist of assembling the kiddies in front of towering, seasonal editions of Balamory. Until that day comes, regional theatres will continue to do a roaring trade at this time of year and some of them, like the Birmingham Rep, will, in marked contrast to the licence fee, deserve every penny they charge.

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Pinocchio and his Magical Adventures
By Jenny Tweedie for The Stage

This production leaves you with the overriding impression that, if the Krankies were not in it, there would be nothing much left. Everything is just so stale, from the sets to the dancers.

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Cinderella - Lichfield Garrick

The combination of some bright young newcomers and the experience of comedy veteran Jimmy Cricket is enough to carry the day for this, the Garrick's first panto. While some seasonal shows opt for a harder-edged, comically more aggressive approach, this one is forever warm and gentle. Even the antics of the Ugly Sisters, played by John and Jim Lavelle, are not wildly excessive.

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Babes in the Wood - Oldham Coliseum
By Natalie Anglesey for The Stage


Babes in the Wood may not be the most popular Christmas pantomime but Kevin Shaw's production is certainly one of the clearest readings of this mixture of several fairytales, including Robin Hood and Hansel and Gretel.

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Captain Hook sails in from the Queen Vic
For The Daily Telegraph, Dominic Cavendish reviews Peter Pan at the New Victoria Theatre, Woking and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs at Richmond Theatre


The West End has come in for repeated jibes this year - too few good plays and too much tat being the general, often justified complaint. Oddly, that gripe goes into reverse over the festive season: where oh where are the fake diamond thrills of the commercial panto?

The widely panned Peter Pan at the Savoy stands as a stark illustration of how shoddy things can get when there's no significant competition in town and parents will sign up for anything that resembles a traditional Christmas treat.

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The Snowman
By Alex Whitelaw in The Stage


This classic tale is brought to life onstage in a captivating, delightful adventure. The wonderful array of colourful characters, from the little drummer boy in the playroom to chilling Jack Frost in the wood.

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For the week beginning 24th December, this page also gives a host of links to reviews of other Christmas shows around the UK.

Christmas shows 2003
From The Stage

The Stage has a host of online reviews of Christmas shows around the UK, which are listed here:

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Pantomime is an integral part of Christmas theeatre and will always feature
choreography of some sort, but we can't fit in all the reviews. So, here
is a compendiun for 2005 from around the UK:

Festive fun... Oh, yes it is
Which are the best - and worst - shows of the season from around the country?
Campbell Stevenson, Kate Kellaway, Clare Brennan, Seb Morton-Clark, Lorna
Martin and Spencer Vignes for The Observer.

'Too wishy-washy'
Aladdin and the Enchanted Lamp

In its zeal to offer a family drama, not a pantomime, this production has
missed a vital ingredient: humour. Aladdin has no brother here, but doesn't
need one - he's wishy-washy enough on his own, and does little to make a
young audience empathise with him.

[url=http://observer.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,6903,1669619,00.html]click
for more[/url]