ONE of the most thrilling moments of this year’s Anvil pantomime Cinderella, directed by Michael Gattrell, is an unexpected one.
It comes courtesy of pantomime dame Jamie Morris, who, at one point, totters on stage wearing the highest possible heels a person’s foot could tolerate!
Jamie also selects a ‘lucky’ member of the audience upon whom to bestow his affections at each performance, resulting in some wonderful comic moments – kudos to Basingstoke dad Sal, who responded to a lot of ribbing in very good humour when I saw the show.
Jamie and his partner in crime Tarot Joseph (they play the Ugly Sisters Cilla and Daisy) are stars throughout and their amazing outfits – including a cake stand, Cilla Black and fast food suits – have to be seen to be believed.
They also perform a fun striptease (removing lots and lots of pairs of pants) and an impressive tongue-twisting sequence, aided by Keith Chegwin as Buttons.
The familiar plot, one of the most popular pantomimes, is anchored by bright performances across the board. David Alcock is poor Baron Hardup, Gary Jordan plays Dandini and CBeeebies’ Katy Ashworth is a high-energy funky trainee fairy.
I don’t think the smile ever leaves Cheggers’ face and he seems to particularly love making Cinderella (Sarah Louise Day, also the show’s choreographer) and Prince Charming (Ben Harlow) laughwhen they’re supposed to be frozen!
He also coaches the audience for a fun version of The Music Man just before the show’s finale, sustains the interest of younger theatregoers and sings I’ll Be There For You alongside the very talented young local dancers from North Hampshire Academy of Dance and Basingstoke Academy of Dance.
The soundtrack to all of the merriment includes Anything Can Happen If You Let It from Mary Poppins and popular recent songs from charttopping acts, including Pharrell Williams’ Happy, Taylor Swift’s Shake It Off and One Direction’s Steal My Girl.
And there’s also a memorable appearance by incredibly cute Shetland ponies Lala and Crystal, who take Cinderella off to the ball.
Join in the fun at The Anvil until January 4!
Tickets can be booked online at anvilarts.org.uk.
JOANNE MACE
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