The magic of panto arrived at Darlington Hippodrome through
QDOS Entertainment’s production of Aladdin. This has to be one of the best
pantomimes I have seen in Darlington. The story of Aladdin is well known and
QDOS have been faithful to the story, but they also add the magical touch
through their telling of the story.
This may be the fourth panto this season, for me, with the
predictable track from The Greatest Showman and a burst of Baby Shark, but this
show has so much more. It really comes alive when ‘In Darlo’ to the tune of
Petula Clarke’s ‘Downtown’ livens up the audience as they relate closely to the
landmarks mentioned.
Louie Spence brings his own unique style to the proceedings
and isn’t afraid to be part of the joke, he is clearly up for a good laugh and
doesn’t take himself seriously. He does get very close to the mark for adult
humour, but was loved by the audience for his twists and twirls.
The Darlington girl returning with the amazing voice is Zoe
Birkett as Prince Jasmine. She is a joy to watch and it is fantastic that she
returns to her home town again.
Robin Askwith as Ebanazar personifies evil. He is my favourite
baddie character of the season so far. Empress Ming, who gets her words mixed
up, is inspirational and hilarious. Carl Douglas as Aladdin brings all the
required charm and the young dancers from Joanne Banks Dancers were exceptional.
There is also the outstanding band of Chris Pugh, Peter Brent and Sophie
Hastings.
After all that, the best is yet to come in the pairing of
Eric Potts as Window Twankey and Liam Mellor as Wishee Washee who are the best
combination I have seen in recent years. The routines they create are not going
to be mentioned here as they need to be seen to be believed.
That was a cracking show!
No comments:
Post a Comment