Dick Whittington and his Cat - Review

Hackney Empire, London

****

Written by Will Brenton

Directed by Clive Rowe

Clive Rowe

This year’s pantomime at Hackney Empire is Dick Whittington, with local legend Clive Rowe stepping up to the double honours of helming the show as director as well as playing (Dame) Sarah The Cook.

The story of course is a perennial treat and there is fine work from Kandaka Moore in the title role, Hackney’s favourite Kat B as Dick’s cat Tommy. Graham Macduff is King Rat, Tony Timberlake is Alderman Fitzwarren, Aryana Ramkhalawon is his daughter Alice, Beth Sindy throws some magic into the proceedings as Fairy Bowbells and Max Mirza is Sarah's comedy sidekick, Idle Jack.

But, as ever, the night belongs to Rowe who this year surpasses himself with perhaps the best panto ever to grace the Hackney Empire’s stage. Amidst literally countless costume changes Rowe drives the evening’s comedy at a ruthlessly hilarious pace, all the while drawing great work from his supporting cast. The gags are fast, frequent and perfectly timed with none more risqué than cook Rowe entering dressed as a pepper-mill and telling the audience that he’d bought it on grinder (geddit?).

As Rowe pitches his humour perfectly, leaving both adults and children in stitches of laughter, act one closes to the scene of this greatest of dames, clad on this occasion as the ocean liner “Hello Buoys”, and singing Don’t Rain On My Parade from Funny Girl. Rowe’s credentials as an Olivier-winning star of musical theatre are long established and to see him nailing this Streisand classic is to witness genius in action. Not only that, but by including such a classic gem of a song, the show also introduces its younger audience to a taste of Broadway’s golden years. No bad thing!

Act two plays out to include our heroes stranded on Ee El Pie Island after a storm at sea. This turns out to be a psychedelic ashram (yes … me neither) which while being of tenuous relevance to the storyline, allows the show a chance to reference music from Bowie, Beatles, Madness, Elton John, The Kinks and Joan Armatrading. Absolute delight for the grown-ups. 

Cleo Pettitt has done fine design work both in the show’s scenery and in Rowe’s spectacular gowns. In the pit, Alex Maynard directs his five-piece band with finesse.

Dick Whittington at the Hackney Empjre, with Clive Rowe’s damesmanship, is one of the finest traditional pantos in town.

Runs until 5th January 2025

Photo credit: Mark Senior

Dick Whittington and His Cat - Review

Watford Palace Theatre, Watford

****

Written by Andrew Pollard

Directed by James Williams

Watford's festive offering is a delight.

Taking the traditional tale of Dick Whittington who overcomes all odds to become Lord Mayor of London, Andrew Pollard's iteration sees Dick and his cat TumTum (Louise Cielecki) journey from poverty to the mayoralty via Alice Fitzwarren's Flan Factory and even Xanadu (yes, me neither..)

Anyway - this is pantomime and no-one cares too deeply about the plot so long as the baddie ultimately gets their come-uppance and Dick and Alice can live happily ever after and at the risk of a spoiler, that's exactly what happens!

Reece Evans plays the title role, with his magnificent Dick ultimately vanquishing the equally magnificent Natasha Lewis as the villainous gangster rat, Verminia Yobb. 

Terence Frisch, Watford's resident Dame is sensational as Sherrie Trifle, with stunning costumes and top-notch banter. Frisch's first-act tongue twister, a masterclass in the alliteration of F words (all clean of course, this is a family show) proves a comedy highlight of the show.

Rhiannon Bacchus as Alice proves feisty and demure in equal measure before falling for Dick's charms, and with a Beatles megamix for the grown-ups and loads of slapstick and "he's behind you!" for the kids, this pantomime has it all.

Cleo Pettit's designs and gorgeous backdrops are a delight, while Ryan MacKenzie's three piece band keeps the musical tempo pulsating.

On until the new year, Dick Whittington and His Cat is quite the perfect Xmas treat.

Runs until 2nd January 2022

Dick Whittington - Review

London Palladium

****

Written by Alan McHugh

Music by Gary Hind

Directed by Michael Harrison

Nigel Havers and Charlie Stemp

Following critical and commercial success with last year’s Cinderella, QDOS Entertainment have again invested millions to make Dick Whittington the biggest, boldest and glitziest pantomime on the London circuit with what looks like a degree of overkill, taking a sledgehammer to crush a rat perhaps.

Alan McHugh’s script covers all the bases in the narrative – Dick meets Alice, is charged with ridding London of rats, is falsely charged with theft, goes to Morocco, comes back a hero and is hailed Lord Mayor – but the plot is subsumed to the procession of ‘turns’ hired to do their own excellent thing.  It’s normal in a pantomime to have a comedian, but here there are three – Julian Clary’s campery, Gary Wilmot’s clowning, Paul Zerdin’s ventriloquy – as well as Elaine Paige’s vintage vocals, and street dancer Ashley Banjo and his troupe Diversity who are rather oddly interposed as the Sultan and his bodyguards

This is an extraordinarily boldly costumed show which must have kept lurex manufacturers on overtime for months: at every scene change the 22-strong ensemble appears in a different saturated hue, with elaborate hats and a tonnage of feathers, and there are flashes of theatrical wit like in Fitzwarren’s sweetshop where mannequins pay homage to the ‘Beautiful Girls’ in Follies – or possibly ‘Springtime for Hitler’ – with headdresses and appendages made from giant liquorice allsorts.  

As the Spirit of the Bells Julian Clary's costumes are so elaborate with crystalline accessories they almost hamper his movement - although he doesn't need any excuse not to do choreography because he's nearly as bad at is as he is at singing although he’d defy you to point it out. But he's endlessly, wickedly funny especially at the expense of Elaine Paige who he refers to constantly as E.T.   His bone dry delivery, feigning ennui at the whole process is perfectly timed.

Julian Clary

There are a lot of Dick jokes, and a surprising number of very old jokes which haven't been brushed up for 2017: political topicality is limited to one glancing reference each to Brexit, Trump and Mrs May.  The audience love the old stagers - Nigel Havers is game for a laugh as a sort of self-propelled running gag about wanting a bigger part and being too old for it. Paige is markedly better at the singing than the comedy acting but the parodies of her greatest hits are well written, and Wilmot reminds you that he is every bit as much a musical theatre performer as a comedian when the routine he does naming every tube station to the tune of the can-can is the hit of the show.

But despite being fourth on the bill - and this really is a variety show - the best performer is the ventriloquist Paul Zerdin, British winner of America's Got Talent. Both his routine with his boy dummy Sam, and the words he puts in the mouths of the volunteer kiddies up on stage are terrific, and he's the closest this rather strange confection comes to traditional pantomime.

There is no top over which this production won’t go, whether it’s the rich innuendo in Clary’s script, or the tremendous mechanical effects of an animatronic giant rat, flying London bus or shipwreck where Clary and Charlie Stemp as Dick parody My Heart Will Go On from Titanic while sailing over the heads of the audience.  

At this point any visiting producer with a regional pantomime budget must have lost the will to live.

Ashley Banjo and Diversity

Runs until 14th January 2018

Reviewed by Johnny Fox

Photo credit: Paul Coltas