Jack and the Beanstalk

Synopsis

Jack, a dim boy, sells the family's cow, their last remaining possession, for some 'magic beans', his mother is furious and throws them out of the window. Next morning there is a magic beanstalk, which Jack climbs to the land of the giant. There he rescues the love interest, and the goose that lays the golden eggs and runs away as the giant returns booming 'fee, fie, foe, fum, I smell the blood of an Englishman!' and occasionally 'Be he alive or be he dead I'll grind his bones to make my bread' depending on how bloodthirsty the panto is! As the giant follows Jack down the beanstalk Jack grabs an axe and chops it down thus killing the him.

Our Review:

6 December 2009

Pantomimes always tread a fine line between entertaining the children who make up the bulk of their audience and playing up to the grown-ups who pay for the tickets. Sadly, this production of Jack and the Beanstalk takes a firm pace in the wrong direction and comes down firmly on the side of the crude and the downright vulgar.

Paul Zerdin, aided and abetted by his dummy Sam, is Jack in this his 15th panto and you would be hard pressed at times to spot which was the more wooden. Suffice it to say that when Sam sang solo in the second act his was more effective and tuneful than Zerdin’s own voice.

It may be tempting for the performers to believe that adult humour soars above the heads of the kids but you gauge the effect in the restiveness of the children and when they are too busy talking to their adult companions you know they are not being engaged as they should be by what is happening on stage. This production drops the traditional opportunity to bring the youngsters o...

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