Christmas Panto at the Nottingham Playhouse: Dick Whittington
This year it was Dick Whittington being shown at the Nottingham Playhouse. We hadn't seen this one for quite a few years so it was refreshing to see something that didn't involved a princess. However, the writer had changed, for the first time since we started going 23 years ago, and it really showed. Although it wasn't a bad thing, it was just different to what we had been used to in previous years.
Anyway, let's talk about the show! It started as it always does, with the introduction of the 'Buttons' character, although this time, he was called 'Silly Billy'. After that, we were introduced to Alice, a girl who owns an odds and sods shop with her father in the heart of London. But, of course, Silly Billy is in love with Alice and he can't pluck up the courage to tell her.
Shortly after that, the Dame walks out in one of her notoriously elaborate outfits and shouts out 'hey up me ducks', which is a famous Nottingham saying, although it is said elsewhere in the Midlands. Anyway, it's a very friendly start to the show and it's not long before we meet Dick Whittington himself and a fairy called Fairy Bowbells. To fashion Dick a friend, Bowbells creates a cat called Tom who stays by Dick's side throughout.
The jokes were hilarious and the songs were very well done, sung and performed. The acting was second-to-none as well. There's nothing I can really say that was negative about it, although there are some improvements that could be made and that includes having a bit more slapstick gags in there, just like old times. The jokes were also quite adult-themed, more so than I remember them being, so there was more laughter from the parents than the children, mainly.
They still had the usual thing at the end though where they bring a few kids up on the stage and they help the audience sing a song. The children then tell everyone who they're at the panto with and what their favourite part was. It often makes for hilarious viewing as you never know what the kids are going to come out with.
Something else I thought was missing was an encore at the end. Usually, they'll sing a song that's popular at the time (this year it was Sweet Caroline because of the football) and they'll often perform it two or three times right at the end, but it was only done once, which was slightly disappointing, but maybe they were pushed for time.
Overall, it was still an excellent show, as always, by the panto team at the Nottingham Playhouse. It never fails to make me feel festive and cosy, but with all the glitz and glamour of theatre shows that are often seen in London's West End. It tops the Theatre Royal pantos hands down and it's also far cheaper - perfect for families looking to have a good time on a budget this Christmas.
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I hope you enjoyed this blog post? Let me know in the comments if you'll be going to panto this year or if you'd like to go to one. I'll see you again very soon with a brand new blog post :)
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