Issue 25/26, 2009
Prompt Corner 
We usually conflate the final two issues of each year into one double number in order to avoid a work frenzy over the New Year holidays, not because there are so few productions to cover in December: as you can see, this issue is pretty much fully the size of two normal ones. It just so happens that most of those productions are seasonal shows. (As you can see on the review pages, I saw four versions of Aladdin alone in London. The year’s other major trend in panto seemed to concern not a particular story but a song, with a number of shows including renditions of Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies [Put A Ring On It]”. I must admit part of me was rather disappointed not to hear Brian Blessed bellowing the refrain out at Wimbledon – after all, Aladdin is the show in which it seems to fit best.) We also hold over some productions that have opened before the dates covered by this issue, so that reviews of all Christmas shows can be published together.
God knows
Yet it is always difficult to draw a line between what does and does not constitute a Christmas show. Michael Punter’s Darker Shores at Hampstead is clearly within the sub-tradition of ghost stories at Christmas, but not Christmassy in itself. (And by the way, Julie Carpenter in her review seems to think “trans-medium” is a gobbledegook coinage, when in fact “trance medium” is a standard term in spiritualism and parapsychology.) Sometimes the division is inconsistent or inexplicable. What makes Treasure Island qualify as a Christmas show? Why is Footsbarn’s Christmas Cracker classified under Christmas shows, but Sandi Toksvig’s offering of the same title not? Search me. To paraphrase the poet Robert Browning, when the classification was first made only God and Ian Shuttleworth knew why, and now only God knows.
(Typographical conventions can sometimes be as mystifying. Why, for instance, does the Daily Mail insist on asterisking out a word in Quentin Lett’s review of The Misanthrope so that he comments that adapter Martin Crimp “rhymes ‘Jackson Pollocks’ with ‘b*******’”? It surely doesn’t tax the intellect to fill in the blanks in this case with “-ollocks” – it’s like a quiz asking, “Who is portrayed in Michelangelo’s sculpture David?”)
Division
Another curious division appears in reviews of The Misanthrope. To put it baldly, women tend to be more critical of Keira Knightley than men. This has been the case not just in the reviews reprinted here, but also in the various discussions I’ve had about the production. I’d love to be able to explain this phenomenon. It doesn’t seem to be that male critics are blinded by her beauty (I can testify for myself and at least one other critic, who knew nothing of her screen work and was rapidly won over by her stage performance), nor female ones jealous of it. To a certain extent, her thinness seems to be an issue, which in turn bears on definitions of beauty, “body fascism” and so forth. What we do seem to agree on is that she improves after a hesitant first scene, and is at her best when holding court as the film star she both is and portrays in Martin Crimp’s version of Molière’s play. As for the final paragraph of Paul Taylor’s review, I make no comment.
And we do, try as we might, employ different standards for Christmas shows (whatever we decide they may be). I’m sure none of us failed to scratch our heads several times at the tonal and narrative mishmash of Jack And The Beanstalk at Hammersmith. (I still have no idea whatever how the pair of giant Caribbean snails fit in; even the explanation offered by Berwick Kaler at one point in his York panto, “There’s no logical reason for doing this, except that it’s funny,” didn’t hold in many of the Hammersmith instances.) Yet a number of reviews indulge the show: it is, after all, the Lyric’s return to panto after 30 years, and it keeps old and young reasonably amused. If you try to argue that “reasonably amused” isn’t a sufficient criterion even for overall entertainment value, you immediately start sounding earnest and humourless. Oh, well: suffice to say that Hammersmith’s multi-authored script reminded me of the saying that a camel is a horse designed by a committee. As for Pamela Anderson’s appearance at Wimbledon, some of us seemed to be striving hard not to recycle Johnny Carson’s introduction once on his TV chat show: “Ladies and gentlemen, here they are: Dolly Parton!”
Normal
A final reminder that it will once again be four weeks until the first double-issue of Theatre Record’s 30th year. In this case, it is because it takes some time for theatres to return to “normal” scheduling after the holidays... London theatres, at least. Look at the dates of all those Scottish pantomimes and other Christmas shows: few of them venture significantly into the New Year. Why can’t we all snap back into our normal routines so quickly after all that seasonal dissipation? Then again...
Ian Shuttleworth | ian@theatrerecord.com
Reviewed Issue 25/26, 2009
London
Place cursor over title to see cast. Click here for Region Reviews
| Production | Venue | Opened |
Closed |
Page |
| ALADDIN Pantomime by Susie McKenna and Steven Edis | Hackney Empire | 3 Dec |
9 Jan |
1353 |
| ALADDIN New pantomime by Trish Cooke and Robert Hyman | T R Stratford E15 | 8 Dec |
16 Jan |
1355 |
| ALADDIN Pantomime by Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | Shaw | 11 Dec |
2 Jan |
1358 |
| ALADDIN Pantomime by Eric Potts | New Wimbledon | 15 Dec |
10 Jan |
1356 |
| ANASTASIA Revival of play by Marcelle Maurette | Pushkin House | 18 Dec |
9 Jan |
1313 |
| ARTIST DESCENDING A STAIRCASE Revival of play by Tom Stoppard | Old Red Lion | 3 Dec |
31 Dec |
1305 |
| CABARET SIMON Cabaret show by Lone Twin and Stuart Silver | Pit | 17 Dec |
31 Dec |
1350 |
| CAMILLE O'SULLIVAN: THE DARK ANGEL Musical cabaret | Apollo | 9 Dec |
16 Jan |
1321 |
| THE CAT IN THE HAT New adaptation by Katie Mitchell from book by Dr Seuss (NT) | Cottesloe | 16 Dec |
18 Jan |
1335 |
| CHARLIE AND LOLA'S BEST BESTEST PLAY Revival of adap. by Jonathan Lloyd from Lauren Child | Hampstead | 10 Dec |
1 Jan |
1306 |
| A CHRISTMAS CAROL Adaptation by Susie McKenna and Steve Edis from story by Charles Dickens | Arts | 25 Nov |
10 Jan |
1359 |
| A CHRISTMAS CAROL Revival of adaptation by Phil Willmott from story by Charles Dickens | King's Head | 4 Dec |
10 Jan |
1360 |
| A CHRISTMAS CAROL Revival of adaptation by Neil Bartlett from story by Charles Dickens | Southwark Playhouse | 11 Dec |
9 Jan |
1361 |
| CINDERELLA New adaptation by Phil Porter | Unicorn SE1 | 10 Dec |
24 Jan |
1362 |
| DARKER SHORES New play by Michael Punter | Hampstead | 7 Dec |
16 Jan |
1309 |
| A DAUGHTER'S A DAUGHTER Revival of play by Agatha Christie writing as Mary Westmacott | Trafalgar Studio 1 | 15 Dec |
9 Jan |
1327 |
| DICK BARTON: QUANTUM OF PORRIDGE Musical by Duncan Wisbey & Stefan Bednarczyk | Warehouse, Croydon | 13 Dec |
21 Feb |
1348 |
| DR MARIGOLD AND MR CHOPS Double bill by Charles Dickens | Riverside | 15 Dec |
31 Jan |
1362 |
| FOOTSBARN'S CHRISTMAS CRACKER Seasonal presentation | Globe | 22 Dec |
3 Jan |
1364 |
| THE FOREST New piece by Fevered Sleep | Young Vic, Maria | 10 Dec |
24 Dec |
1344 |
| FRANK'S CLOSET Return of musical by Stuart Wood | Hoxton Hall | 7 Dec |
16 Jan |
1306 |
| THE FULL MONTY Revival of musical by David Yazbeck, Terrence McNally, from film by Simon Beaufoy | New Players | 3 Dec |
2 Jan |
1308 |
| HIGH SOCIETY Revival of musical by Cole Porter, with book by Arthur Kopit | Upstairs at the Gatehouse | 22 Dec |
31 Jan |
1351 |
| THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST Revival of play by Oscar Wilde | Greenwich Playhouse | 17 Dec |
17 Jan |
1345 |
| AN INSPECTOR CALLS Return of revival of play by J B Priestley (NT) | Wyndham's | 3 Dec |
1352 | |
| JACK AND THE BEANSTALK New pantomime by Richard Bean et al. | Lyric Hammersmith | 30 Nov |
9 Jan |
1365 |
| KIM NOBLE WILL DIE New comedy/performance piece | Soho | 8 Dec |
9 Jan |
1322 |
| A MADMAN’S CONFESSION New play by Harriet Mann (Deadpan Prods) | White Bear | 15 Dec |
3 Jan |
1329 |
| THE MISANTHROPE Revival of play by Molière, adapted by Martin Crimp | Comedy | 17 Dec |
13 Mar |
1340 |
| MORECAMBE New play by Tim Whitnall | Duchess | 10 Dec |
17 Jan |
1324 |
| 1984 New adaptation from novel by George Orwell (Blind Summit) | BAC | 8 Dec |
9 Jan |
1312 |
| OLIVER TWIST New adaptation by Piers Bleckley from novel by Charles Dickens (Giant Olive TC) | Lion & Unicorn | 2 Dec |
24 Jan |
1311 |
| THE PAJAMA MEN: LAST STAND TO REASON New comedy show | Soho | 7 Dec |
9 Jan |
1322 |
| PETER PAN Return of revival of play by J M Barrie, adapted by Tanya Ronder | O2 | 3 Dec |
10 Jan |
1369 |
| RED New play by John Logan | Donmar Warehouse | 8 Dec |
6 Feb |
1314 |
| ROOM ON THE BROOM New play by Julia Donaldson (Tall Stories) | Pleasance | 1 Dec |
3 Jan |
1370 |
| ROPE Revival of play by Patrick Hamilton | Almeida | 16 Dec |
30 Jan |
1331 |
| SANDI TOKSVIG'S CHRISTMAS CRACKER New panto/variety show | Royal Festival Hall | 15 Dec |
24 Dec |
1330 |
| SKELLIG Revival of adaptation by David Almond from his book (Birmingham Stage Co) | Bloomsbury | 15 Dec |
23 Jan |
1339 |
| THE STEFAN GOLASZEWSKI PLAYS Double bill by Stefan Golaszewski | Bush | 4 Dec |
9 Jan |
1307 |
| TAP AND CHAT WITH LIONEL BLAIR Cabaret show | New End | 14 Dec |
29 Dec |
1334 |
| TREASURE ISLAND Revival of adaptation by Karen Louise Hebden from book by RL Stevenson | Rose, Kingston | 14 Dec |
9 Jan |
1370 |
| TWELFTH NIGHT Revival of play by Shakespeare (RSC) | Duke Of York's | 22 Dec |
27 Feb |
1346 |
| THE WASTE LAND Revival of adaptation of poem by T S Eliot | Wilton's Music Hall | 31 Dec |
10 Jan |
1349 |
We had no space to reprint single reviews of the following shows:
In London – DICK WHITTINGTON (Rosemary Branch), THE GREAT AMERICAN SEASONAL SONGBOOK (New End), THE GRUFFALO (Apollo), THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS (Hen & Chickens), OH NO IT ISN’T! (Union), PETRUSHKA (Little Angel), SINDERFELLA (Leicester Square)
Reviewed Issue 25/26, 2009
Regions
Place cursor over title to see cast. Click here for London Reviews
| Title | Venue | Opened |
Closed |
Page |
| ALADDIN Panto by Bob Black | Glasgow, King’s | 10 Dec |
17 Jan |
1388 |
| ALI BABA AND THE FORTY THIEVES (Travelling Light) | Bristol, Tobacco Factory | 11 Dec |
17 Jan |
1377 |
| ALLOTMENT Collection of live installations(NTS) | Glasgow, Govan Cross Ctr | 5 Dec |
5 Dec |
1376 |
| ARABIAN NIGHTS Revival of adaptation by Dominic Cooke(RSC) | Stratford-upon-Avon, Courtyard | 15 Dec |
3 Jan |
1378 |
| AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS New adaptation by Toby Hulse from novel by Jules Verne | Bath, Egg | 22 Dec |
16 Jan |
1375 |
| BLITHE SPIRIT Revival of play by Noël Coward | Manchester, Royal Exchange | 14 Dec |
23 Jan |
1374 |
| A CHRISTMAS CAROL New adaptation by Bryony Lavery / Jason Carr from Charles Dickens | Birmingham Rep | 1 Dec |
9 Jan |
1380 |
| A CHRISTMAS CAROL revival of adaptation by Neil Duffield from story by Charles Dickens | Dundee Rep | 3 Dec |
2 Jan |
1389 |
| CINDERELLA Pantomime | Aberdeen, His Majesty’s | 28 Nov |
3 Jan |
1390 |
| CINDERELLA Adaptation by Alan McHugh | Glasgow, Citizens | 2 Dec |
2 Jan |
1390 |
| THE CORSTORPHINE ROAD NATIVITY revival (adapted) of play by Tim Firth | Edinburgh, Festival | 4 Dec |
19 Dec |
1391 |
| HANSEL AND GRETEL: A WONDER TALE New adaptation by Carl Grose (Old Vic / Kneehigh) | Bristol Old Vic | 4 Dec |
23 Jan |
1381 |
| HONK! Revival of musical by George Stiles & Anthony Drewe | Northampton, Royal | 4 Dec |
3 Jan |
1372 |
| HUMPTY DUMPTY New pantomime by Berwick Kaler | York, Theatre Royal | 11 Dec |
30 Jan |
1383 |
| LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD Adaptation by Julie Brown / Alasdair Macrae | Glasgow, Arches | 3 Dec |
3 Jan |
1392 |
| OLIVER TWIST New adaptation by Deborah McAndrew from> novel by Charles Dickens | Bolton, Octagon | 27 Nov |
23 Jan |
1371 |
| PETER PAN Revival of play by J M Barrie | Edinburgh, Royal Lyceum | 27 Nov |
3 Jan |
1393 |
| PETER PAN: A MUSICAL New musical by David Taylor / Paul Miller / Julian Ronnie from J M Barrie | Leicester, Curve | 9 Dec |
23 Jan |
1384 |
| PINOCCHIO Adaptation by Paul Boyd from story by Carlo Collodi | Perth | 4 Dec |
2 Jan |
1394 |
| PRIDE AND PREJUDICE New adaptation by Simon Reade from novel by Jane Austen | Bath, Theatre Royal | 8 Dec |
12 Dec |
1373 |
| RIOT, REBELLION AND BLOODY INSURRECTION New play by Dom Grace / Boff Whalley (Red Ladder) | Halifax, Viaduct | 3 Dec |
4 Dec |
1372 |
| ROBINSON CRUSOE AND THE CARIBBEAN PIRATES Panto by Paul Elliot with Allan Stewart | Edinburgh, King’s | 2 Dec |
17 Jan |
1395 |
| THE SECRET GARDEN Revival of adaptation from novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett | Leeds, WYP Quarry | 8 Dec |
23 Jan |
1373 |
| SINBAD THE PANTOMIME Panto by Liam Rudden | Musselburgh, Brunton | 20 Nov |
2 Jan |
1396 |
| SLEEPING BEAUTY Adaptation by Johnny McKnight | Stirling, Macrobert Arts Centre | 28 Nov |
31 Dec |
1397 |
| THE SNOW QUEEN Adaptation by Matthew Lenton | Dunfermline, Carnegie Hall | 4 Dec |
26 Dec |
1398 |
| SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS Pantomime by Eric Potts | Richmond | 9 Dec |
10 Jan |
1384 |
| TREASURE ISLAND New adaptation by Andrew Pollard from R L Stevenson (Northern Broadsides) | Scarborough, Stephen Joseph | 25 Nov |
5 Dec |
1387 |
| YA BEAUTY AND THE BEAST Adaptation by Gordon Dougall & Fletcher Mathers | Glasgow, Tron | 1 Dec |
3 Jan |
1398 |
| ZORRO New adaptation by Davey Anderson (Visible Fictions) | Edinburgh, Traverse | 5 Dec |
24 Dec |
1376 |
We had no space to reprint single reviews of the following shows:
In the Regions – BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (Hereford, Courtyard), BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (Nottingham Playhouse), BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (Oxford, Mini Plant), A CHRISTMAS CAROL (Cardiff, Sherman), A CHRISTMAS CAROL (Scarborough, Stephen Joseph), CINDERLLA (Ayr, Citadel), CINDERELLA (Glasgow, Easterhouse Platform), CINDERELLA (Leeds, WYP Courtyard), CINDERELLA (Milton Keynes), DICK WHITTINGTON & HIS CAT (Chipping Norton), DISNEY’S BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (Glasgow, Clyde Auditorium), GRIMM TALES (Manchester, Library), JACK AND THE BEANSTALK (Inverness, Eden Court), JACK AND THE BEANSTALK (Motherwell), THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE (Newcastle-under-Lyme, New Vic), MOTHER GOOSE (St Andrews, Byre), THE NEW MAGICAL ADVENTURES OF PINOCCHIO (Glasgow, Pavilion), THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS (Stirling, Macrobert), PEEP (Stirling, Macrobert), PINOCCHIO (Kirkcaldy, Adam Smith)THE PUDDOCK AND THE PRINCESS (Glasgow, Brian Cox Studio), ROBIN HOOD AND THE BABES IN THE WOOD (Glasgow, Eastwood Park), SANTA’S LITTLE HELPERS (Glasgow, Tron), SLEEPING BEAUTY (Kilmarnock, Palace), SLEEPING BEAUTY (Paisley), SNOW WHITE (Cumbernauld), WHITE CHRISTMAS (Salford, Lowry), WICKEN CHRISTMAS: CINDERS’ REVENGE (Glasgow Citizens)