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Show: Pinocchio
Society: Handsworth & Hallam Theatre Company
Venue: Montgomery theatre
Credits: Tom Whalley
Type: Sardines
Author: Joanne Thornewell
Performance Date: 12/04/2023
Pinocchio
Joanne Thornewell | 13 Apr 2023 13:05pm
Pinocchio is an unusual choice for a pantomime, and Easter is an unusual time to perform it.
But HHTC is a confident, capable company with a wealth of panto experience amongst its talented members and has decided to risk it!
Does the gamble pay off? Artistically, the answer is a resounding yes. The show is a delight both visually and in content. Taking a familiar story, but not one typically presented in panto format works very well here. It akes a pleasant change not to end with a royal wedding!
Having said that, the panto ingredients the audience is expecting are all here. The Blue Fairy, ably played by Rachel Hemstalk adds the required magical element, while Andrew Stansall’s scheming Stromboli keeps the audience booing. His henchmen, Gatto and Volpe, are played well by Sara Ross and Sam Widdowson.
The title character of Pinocchio is delightfully played by Louise Loftus. She is entirely believable as a wooden boy and maintains the necessary wide-eyed innocence beautifully. She is also an accomplished singer and dancer – the group tap scene is excellent.
HHTC pantos have a strong local following and in recent years brothers Matthew and Joseph Walker have played the Dame and her idiot son. They are a highly effective double act with a natural chemistry. A couple of their scenes warrant special mention – the story telling using puns of different brands of drinks is very clever and has the audience laughing and groaning in equal measure. The ‘special sausage cutter’ scene has the audience howling with laughter. I won’t spoil it in this review – there are still tickets available – but it is hysterically funny.
I have to say, Matthew Walker is an outstanding Dame. He simply commands the stage with perfect comic timing and very funny and quick witted ad libs. He interacts with the audience brilliantly and seems completely at ease on stage. If something doesn’t quite go as rehearsed (always a danger with a panto), rather than hoping the audience hasn’t noticed, Walker highlights it to delicious comic effect. The several deviations from the script are some of the funniest parts of the show. He has a fabulous relationship with the audience and they are obviously hanging on his every word. A very talented performer who I am impressed to read has also directed the show.
I enjoyed the randomness of a silent and bemused trouserless Boris Johnson being in the cage with Pinocchio – an odd choice which just worked! The uncredited actor was spot on too. David Jefferson singing ‘I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles’ dressed as a prawn inside the whale is also amusing.
The make up team (Alice Gray, Hannah Spencer, Marie Rowley and team) has created some excellent effects, most notably Pinocchio, Jiminy Cricket, Gatto the cat and Volpe the fox. The lighting, by TD Lighting, is also very effective, particularly the street scene cobbles and the water scenery.
Jiminy Cricket is played by young Ollie Walker, in his first principal panto role, following the family tradition. He gives a confident performance with a clear delivery. HHTC is a family based group with the same performers appearing year after year. Their Chairman makes special mention of the family element in the programme, and indeed some of the performers are pre-school age.
The ensemble delivers Hayley Wilbourne and Beth Cooke’s slick choreography very well, from the Puppet on A String opening through to the finale.
If I have any criticism, the first half at 80 minutes is rather long for many of the very young audience members who were getting very fidgety and needed multiple toilet breaks. The sound is also a little inconsistent with some of the actors’ lines difficult to hear at times.
Overall, though, a really funny evening at the theatre, which deserves to play to full houses.