Cinderella

Rhyme Time

Cinderella

by Loz Keal

Exchange Players and Twickenham Youth Theatre at the Exchange Theatre, Twickenham until 22^nd December

Review by Andrew Lawston

Cinderella is an evergreen pantomime story, filled as it is with grotesque siblings, disguises, and a dash of fairy magic.  Writer and producer Loz Keal’s new script for The Exchange Players slims down the story to its bare bones for a fast and fun-filled show.

Proceedings at our relaxed performance are opened by Samantha McGill’s newly-qualified fairy godmother who has trouble finding rhymes to end her verses – a fun running gag that soon has many audience members calling out to correct her.  We soon meet Buttons and Cinderella for a lively opening number, along with members of Twickenham Youth Theatre.  We saw the Blue Team, who formed an energetic chorus, and delivered some fun jokes, all with huge confidence and aplomb.

In line with convention, Kieran Rose’s chirpy Buttons introduces himself as the main link between the audience and the story, and younger members were already shouting “Hello, Buttons!” with extreme enthusiasm by the end of his first scene.

Prince Charming, Dandini, and a disappointed Footman hand out invitations to the Prince’s ball to villagers including Twickenham Youth Theatre’s Valentina Tchaikovsky, Oliver Goldhawk, John King, Eliza Richardson, Millie Merryweather, and Tabatha Phillips.

Shortly afterwards, we are reintroduced to Ellie Armstrong’s spirited Cinderella, right before that spirit is crushed by Sally Halsey’s swaggeringly evil Wicked Step-Mother, and the Ugly Sisters.  David Hannigan as “Bey Bey” and John Wilkinson as “Tay Tay” proudly steal every scene in which they appear, aided by some spectacular costumes.

After Cinderella is sent into the forest to gather wood, she meets Em Hartnett’s charismatic Prince Charming, who has swapped coats with Marc Batten’s engaging Dandini.  Hartnett and Armstrong clearly enjoy their inevitable duet, and have great chemistry.

The fairy godmother’s scene calls for a few jokes about limited resources, but Cinderella’s on-stage transformation into her ball costume is a cleverly-handled piece of wardrobe trickery.

Loz Keal’s script makes full use of traditional call and response pantomime material, and also includes quite a few of the equally traditional “jokes for the grown-ups”.  Our audience was broadly on the younger side, so quite a few of the more adult jokes didn’t quite get the reception they deserved – but they were delivered with precise and confident timing, and we certainly appreciated them.  The comedy performances are of course accompanied by an eclectic variety of songs, courtesy of Helen Geldert, supplemented by Samantha McGill’s choreography.  From I Want to Hold Your Hand by the Beatles to Happy by Pharrell Williams, the music is upbeat, and the performers fully commit to the routines.

The set is minimal, consisting of a screen on which scenery is projected, two doors downstage, and a small plinth centre stage which is used mostly as a prop table.  None of the cast takes this clear opportunity for a “someday my plinth will come” joke, but rest assured that almost any other classic pantomime gag you can think of is present and correct, and delivered with great gusto.

If the set is minimal, however, any savings were clearly ploughed into the wardrobe budget.  Terrie Cresswell’s collection of costumes are generally bright and sparkling to offset the dark set, from Cinderella’s first patchwork dress to the Wicked Step-Mother’s spectacular pirate’s outfit.  And of course the most spectacular costumes are saved for the ball scene, where Cinderella’s beautiful blue frock is almost in danger of being overshadowed by the… confections… worn by the Ugly Sisters – two of many costumes in which the gruesome twosome chew up the non-existent scenery!

The lack of physical scenery does mean that the set can change at the touch of a button, and director Wesley Henderson Roe takes advantage of this to ensure that the show moves along at a brisk pace between scenes.

The cast cope well with a few first night technical jitters with microphones, and the younger members of the audience scream their approval almost constantly.  With strong production values and a great ensemble cast, Cinderella is a fast-paced and highly entertaining pantomime for all ages.

Andrew Lawston, December 2024

Photography by Louise Ellard-Turnbull