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Ferndown Phoenix Musical Theatre Barrington Theatre Ferndown January 2004 Probably the plot looked good on paper, but translated to the stage it was not really pantomime material and at times the evening dragged, despite the cast’s hard work. There were some confusing inconsistencies in the story, and it was a shame that there was no big number just prior to the interval to set the audience up for the second half. Most performances, although good, were not really larger-than-life enough for the genre, with the exception being Catherine Ruff’s exceptionally outstanding Witch. Sam Richardson was an appealing Spider, while Steve Butterworth and Andy Walker as comedy duo Nick and Nack drew plenty of audience response. Gina Birch and Madeleine Horne were well paired as love interest Mitzi and Matt, and Scott Price and Trish Ruff were suitably nasty as Lord Lavish and Miss Vinigarett. Terry Holbert gave an impressive characterisation as the old gypsy woman, and Mike Hutchings looked a treat as Dame Muffet, although he was much too low key. But it really wasn’t panto. Oh no it wasn’t. Linda Kirkman Courtesy of the Bournemouth Daily Echo |
