Pantomime is back, and this Playhouse production of Robin Hood kicks off with heady expectations - a rousing rendition of The Greatest Show - and doesn’t disappoint.
Naomi Alade takes a lead role as Marian, whose vocal talents really shine outside of ensemble pieces where her voice takes centre stage, the mark of a talented vocalist. Robin himself (Steffan Lloyd-Evans) only emerges in a major role in the second half of the performance, with a voice that perfectly complements in duets.
It’s hard at times to muster a boo for the villain of the piece, the Sheriff of Nottingham (Gareth David-Lloyd), with his charismatic stage presence and sensational singing voice. Alas, we are bound by tradition, and the more spirited boos were met with a hand cupped around the ear, as if to say “is that all you’ve got?”
Panto is an excuse to bring together a smorgasbord of genres and worldly themes, attempting to mix the old with the zeitgeist, and Robin Hood certainly pushes the boat out in this regard. The format has had to adjust to a pandemic taking over as the spirit of the age, and as such we were treated to a satirical take on the Government’s daily briefing (“next slide, please” involving some playground equipment) and a tribute to the key-workers during the past few years (Bonnie Tyler’s Holding Out for a Hero performed to cast members dressed as nurses, firefighters, etc.). Even a silly take on The Twelve Days of Christmas involved “five toilet rolls”. It’s not all Covid-Covid-Covid, though. References to the modern world abound, with TikTok dances and Great British Bake Off amongst them, and those with a liking for the Wellerman sea shanty or a rendition of Dance Monkey will not go home disappointed.
Anybody expecting a fully-fledged retelling of the story of Robin Hood may want to aim for a different medium - there’s not a lot of room for plot with everything else that’s going on, but that’s no bad thing. The story is an excuse to be entertained, and the interaction between cast and audience is a big part of what makes panto, panto. Friar/Dame Freya (spoiler alert!) Tuck (Nigel Collins) is throwing sweets into the urgent young crowd at every opportunity, and there are multiple “it’s behind you” and “oh no it isn’t” moments and a water-pistol soaking for those nearer the front.
This is a story of resilience and making it through a tough time, and trying to have as much fun as humanly possible while you’re at it.
It’s good to be back.
Gwen (age 8) says: “My favourite part was probably the Twelve Days of Christmas and being squirted with the water. It was very creative and fun. My favourite characters were Betty the Crow (Dev Joshi) and the Villain.”