Sleeping Beauty
Show: Everyman Rock ‘N’ Roll Panto: Sleeping Beauty
Format: Pantomime
Genre: Comedy
Writers: Sarah A Nixon & Mark Chatterton
Cast: Stephanie Hockley, Jamie Noar, Gracie Lai, Anna Soden, Adam Keast, Matthew Quinn & Danny Burns
Review Date: December 5 2019
Performances: November 23 2019-January 18 2020, Various Times
Location: Everyman Theatre, Liverpool
Duration: 165 Minutes incl. an interval
Age Rating: 5+
There are so many pantomimes around Christmas time that it takes something special for one such show to truly stand out. But the Everyman Theatre manage to achieve this with their Rock ‘N’ Roll Panto, in this case, Sleeping Beauty. The result is one of the most thoroughly enjoyable nights that you could wish to have at any theatre.
Everyman Rock ‘N’ Roll Panto: Sleeping Beauty
Synopsis
The story opens with Sleeping Beauty (Stephanie Hockley), a.k.a. Princess Rosa, asleep while surrounded by her friends Fairy Poppins (Anna Soden), Sir Roger (Adam Keast), Queen Gladys (Matthew Quinn) – a Dame character – and Doc Toc (Danny Burns). We learn that she is in the midst of a hundred-year sleep, which was the result of a spell triggered by the vile Lady Magnificent (Gracie Lai). Only true love can break the spell, but the only romantic feelings seemed to come from Gladys towards an audience member named Craig, which was hilarious. That is, until Doc Toc uses his own magical powers to perform theatre’s answer to VAR: reversing things to how they were, in this case over a century ago.
Born
Indeed, we head back to the moment when Rosa was first born, but Magnificent is still livid that she is not deemed to be the fairest in the land, and so she casts her evil spell upon the Beauty-to-be. Fast-forward to her 21st birthday, when the spell is set to take full effect, and Rosa meets a dashing gentleman by the name of Prince Casper (Jamie Noar). This, though, is Magnificent’s way to lead Rosa into the trap, despite the best efforts of her friends to dissuade her from what is clearly a trap.
Ultimately, Magnificent manages to overcome a minor bump in the road and use an invisible hat to set the spell on Rosa, and Casper too. Outraged, Roger, Gladys and the other cast members find a time machine to leap ahead back to the present day; with their attempts to break the spell in the past having been foiled, it is now up to them to return to modern times in order to defeat the spell, save Rosa (as well as her budding romance with Casper) and overcome Magnificent once and for all.
Analysis
Two things allow this show to become a must-see compared to other pantos which would follow similar story arcs. One of those is in the title “Rock ‘N’ Roll”, because this production heavily incorporates music. It goes beyond the usual tunes that we expect from a panto. Many chart hits past and present are here. And we see guitars, pianos, harmonicas and other instruments. The upshot is that this essentially merges a pantomime with a rock concert, and more impressively still, the cast members double as musicians, meaning that Snow White will be singing one minute and playing the guitar around five minutes later. It isn’t obvious to the crowd that the actors and actresses are doubling. But when you notice, one’s appreciation of their efforts magnifies.
The second, and arguably most important, element to elevate this to the highest level is the sheer entertainment factor. All pantos come with slapstick humour, double entendres and clever yet equally daft jokes, but this show thrives on such aspects. People cried with laughter at the priceless facial expressions and the over-the-top dances by Roger and Gladys. Plus, there’s the near-the-knuckle lines that may have only just bobbed over kids’ heads to have the adults in stitches. Then there’s the fourth-wall shattering moments when things veered off-script. The crowd contributed to this at times, by the way. A young attendee stated “He’s gone away” when Rosa was looking for the Prince. And there were many other occasions when the outrageous antics happening on stage overworked my funny bone.
Appeal
Further adding to the appeal of the production was the intimate circular environment that the Everyman provides, the superb settings which combined authenticity with colour, the neat props that would come from the sides, from above and from below on occasion too, the outstanding costumes which made every cast member look the part to a tee, and the stage directions which took what on paper would be simple scenes and turned them into highlights of the night. Not forgetting the acting and comedic timing of the performers themselves: all involved were incredible, but I have to give a special mention to the hilarious combination of Adam Keast and Matthew Quinn, along with the hard work and singing by Gracie Lai. Oh, and keep an eye on the number of costume and character changes for Danny Burns, whose increasingly-frequent switches become another source of amusement.
Summary Of Everyman Rock ‘N’ Roll Panto: Sleeping Beauty
Simply put, you have to see The Everyman Rock ‘N’ Roll Panto: Sleeping Beauty. I don’t want to spoil the show by revealing too much. So hopefully, I’ve done justice in not giving a massive amount away. However, I strongly encourage you with the strongest recommendation to check this out. It runs until the middle of January, so there is plenty of time. But I would urge you to make sure you don’t miss out and watch it whenever you can. It’s fun for the whole family, and it’s unlike any other panto you will see. Truly an incredible panto.
Notes
Target Audience: Ages 8+
Content: Some Risqué Lines
Recommendation?: Yes
Overall Rating: 10/10 – Perfect
Everyman Rock ‘N’ Roll Panto: Sleeping Beauty Further Link
So, the Everyman Rock ‘N’ Roll Panto: Sleeping Beauty runs at the Everyman Theatre until Saturday January 18 2020. To buy tickets, click here or call 0151 709 4776.
