Beauty And The Beast
St. Helens Theatre Royal is the first theatre to open its doors in the North West since the second lockdown with Beauty And The Beast. I must give grateful thanks to Chantelle Nolan, the theatre manager, and her entire team.
On arrival, there was a socially-distanced queue with two-metre markings to the box office. The theatre looked very clean and prepared. Sanisiting your hands at the entrance. Masks had to be worn walking around the theatre and whilst sitting in your seat. Their was waitress service for your drinks etc.
The pantomime began with the good fairy Rose played by Jenna Sian O’Hara in Jane Horrocks mode. She had a beautiful singing voice. The prince was weak initially, but he soon found his range.
Gaston, played by Tim Lucas, stole the show with his over-confident bragging, and his egotistical and hilarious performance. His energy throughout was amazing. The songs throughout were very cleverly and wittingly-adapted to often refer to the Covid pandemic.
The scenery was excellent, as was Scott Gallagher as French Franc. The dancers wore face visors, but they certainly did not inhibit their dancing, and there were beautiful colourful costumes throughout the show. Madam Botox played by Abigail Middleton was also fantastic and could play the saxophone very well.
I did find the pantomime more risqué than normal, but not offensive. The children loved it and certainly entered into the spirit of pantomime. Whilst an adult might be aware of subtle changes due to Covid, I certainly don’t think the children were.
Christmas would not be Christmas without pantomime. And I would thoroughly recommend a visit to St. Helens Theatre Royal for a very entertaining and superb pantomime in the form of Beauty And The Beast.
Notes
Target Audience: Ages 10+
Content: Some Risqué References
Recommendation?: Yes
Overall Rating: 10/10 – Perfect
Beauty And The Beast Tickets
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