Show: Jack & The Beanstalk
Format: Pantomime
Genre: Comedy
Date: December 18 2018
Location: Empire Theatre, Liverpool
Liverpool‘s Empire Theatre promised big things – giant things! – with its latest festive panto offering of Jack & The Beanstalk. And it’s safe to say that they have greatly succeeded.
Jack & The Beanstalk
Description Of Jack & The Beanstalk
The show opens in the village where we meet the villain, Fleshcreep (Daniel Taylor). Then, we’re introduced to Jack Trot (Alex James-Hatton) and his pals, not least his brother Simple Simon (John Evans) and his mother, Dame Trot (Iain Stuart-Robertson). He tells us that he loves Princess Apricot (Clair Gleave), but he can’t find the courage to tell her. Jack’s family are told by Fleshcreep that their rent has increased and that he’ll throw them out the next day, but they realise that to save the day, they could sell their pet cow, Moo Moo. This leads to a great scene where a bunch of animals (played by The Liverpool Empire Babes amongst others) join The Trots for a big sing-song of Talk To The Animals.
Mother Nature (Shirley Ballas) is the fairy of the tale, and she occasionally appears to lend a helping hand. This includes some great dance scenes, particularly in the second half with Simple Simon as part of a mini Strictly contest. I should mention at this point that the costumes were very good, not least for the animals, and in particular the very cute sheep and lambs! It also makes for great use of stage space, although the rest of the auditorium was also used for chases and audience interaction (of which there was plenty).
Love
Meanwhile, as Jack and Princess Apricot begin to express their love for one another through song, Jack is sent to sell Moo-Moo, only for the wicked Fleshcreep to buy the animal for what Jack is told would be 50 golden nuggets, but is actually just a few magic beans. The Trots are unhappy. But Mother Nature assures Jack that if Dame throws the beans out of the window, a beanstalk will grow. During this time, Fleshcreep also manages to kidnap Apricot, giving Jack a further reason to try and grow a beanstalk to challenge Fleshcreep and rescue those closest to him, though the lure of an evil giant (who we see at various points) is intimidating to all.
After a funny bedtime routine involving all three Trots, they awaken to – yes! – a super-sized beanstalk. As Jack and co. plan their venture into the clouds, we see Simple Simon involved in some great comedy scenes. Along with a string of one-liners, we also get a fantastic moment where he is trying to translate a whole bunch of tongue twisters with the clear intention to try and catch him out (due to the possibility of a swearword popping up) making things even funnier, as well as Simon being tested before a school exam, and Simon also discussing what he bought at the supermarket. These elevated the show to an even higher level, and is a testament to the superb comedy talents of John Evans.
Slapstick
Jack, Dame, Simon and Mother Nature all ascend into the clouds, and after more slapstick in the form of Simon miming plenty of classic song lines in response to observations by the others, they begin to look for Apricot. We would then witness an excellent 3D experience, as the giant’s lair sees all sorts of creepy creatures jump into sight. Consequently, this would allow all of the kids wearing their 3D glasses to excitedly scream. This was a spectacular presentation for everybody to enjoy, and this was the highlight of the evening.
Analysis Of Jack & The Beanstalk
Eventually, Jack manages to locate Fleshcreep and finds a way to release Apricot. But a confrontation with the Giant leads to a big chase around the Empire. This even sees Simon trapped in a cage by a giant rat (to which he quips “It’s Gary Neville!”). They return to the ground, but the giant ends up falling off the beanstalk. This crushes Fleshcreep in the process, which leads us to the big Jack/Apricot wedding to close the show.
Before then, though, we had several of the cast singing 12 Days Of Christmas. This had a more local feel to it. But this interlude was funnier due to the ad-libbing and seemingly-accidental screw-ups. One of these included the kids in the crowd tossing around a set of toilet rolls. Another saw Simon inadvertently remove one of the speakers from the side of the stage. And a tripping Simon would push down the entire backdrop. This caught everybody by surprise in a good way.
Summary Of Jack & The Beanstalk
This was a first-class show, with a tremendous effort by all involved. Even so, I felt that John Evans and Shirley Ballas were the stars of the night. The settings were very well-done and were very carefully and authentically designed. Furthermore, we saw unique props, exceptional costumes and memorable song and dance routines. Meanwhile, the comedy was spot-on, the story was easy to follow and the 3D experience was brilliant. Oh, and the additional ad-libbing and breaking of character via the cast members laughing only added to the fun. Jack & The Beanstalk was the perfect pantomime evening and one that I urge everybody to see this Christmas.