THE TRADITIONAL pantomime tale of Aladdin was terrifically told when the Jigsaw Players took to the stage at the Trinity Centre in Lickey.
The show yielded plenty of audience participation with cheers, clapping, boos and hisses and singing aplenty.
The story centres on poor Aladdin who dreams of marrying Princess Jasmine but evil baddie Abanazar has other ideas as he tries to get his hands on the magical wish-giving lamp which contains a genie.
Hannah Price played our fantastic hero Aladdin perfectly and we immediately took the character to our hearts. She sang a pitch-perfect solo just before the interval as she led the way. We were all willing her on to win the heart of the Princess.
Glyn Diggett has made the role of the baddie his own over the years and he rose to the challenge ahain with Abanazar. He strutted around the stage, extracting plenty of boos from the audience, as well as a few giggles with his evil presence and few funny lines.
Libby Barrett worked the crowd well as Wishee Washee, getting everyone to shout out his catch phrase everytime he entered the fray.
Likewise, Chris Sugars put in a top performance as the brash dame Widow Twanky. He/she delivered plenty of fantastic one-liners for the adults watching and swanned around the stage in an array of brightly coloured and garish frocks – just how the dame should be.
The most hilarious scene was by far the one on Twanky’s Launderette which had everyone watching in stitches. There was plenty of slapstick comedy and visual gags – every one hitting the mark.
The character to get the most laughs was the Slave of the Ring. Each time Laura Hodgkin appeared, with her dulcet Black Country tone and comical rhymes, the audience roared.
Frances Johnson was a suitably regal Princess Jasmine and performed a super solo in the second half and Bethany Khan (Tingaling) and Jenny Whipp (the Genie) both put in solid performances.
Sam Ryan and Keelan Pavitt worked incredibly well together as the hapless henchmen Hi and Lo and you felt for them as they were mistreated by Abanzar. Young actors Reuben Hodgkin and Riley Winter impressed as police officers PC27 and PC39.
A big shout-out too to the panto dancers who appeared in a multitude of scenes in different outfits. Their choreographed routines were brilliantly delivered throughout the show – there was a lot to learn and a lot of costume changes to get in between their appearances.
Overall, Jigsaw’s Aladdin is a fantastically festive show, full of fun.
The remaining performances take place tomorrow (Sunday, December 1) and next Saturday (December 7) at 1.30pm and 7pm. Further shows will be staged at 7.15pm on December 6 and 2pm on December 8.
Tickets, at £13.50 each, are available by emailing [email protected] or by calling Su Fletcher on 07772 645722 or 07919 505764.
