Last night we were invited to The Marlowe Theatre
To review their 2019 pantomime
Esther, William and I read the story of Mother Goose on the train
As it is not a story we were familiar with
We learned that is an old traditional story
That has been used in pantomimes for over 100 years
The story though is very fitting for today’s society
It is about being kind
It is about what is on the inside being more important
Than beauty, wealth, popularity
We were really excited to see how Evolution Pantomimes
Would bring this alive on The Marlowe Stage
Photo by Pamela Raith Photography
Mother Goose is the 15th co-production between
Evolution Pantomimes and The Marlowe
We were lucky enough to see Cinderella last year
So we knew that we would be in for a good night
Mother Goose exceeded all expectations
From curtain up to curtain down
The whole show was awesome
This pantomime was egg-stra special
For Canterbury favourite Ben Roddy
This pantomime season marks 10 years at The Marlowe for Ben
He has been Dame since 2012
We were fortunate to see Ben in Aladdin a few years ago
And again last year as a truly awful ugly sister
This year as Mother Goose Ben was simply stunning
Actually simply is the wrong word
Ben’s Dames are complex
Hugely funny, awkwardly acrobatic, wonderfully witty
Intelligent and emotional
He also has a wonderful singing voice
He gave a really emotional performance last night
Bringing the audience to soaring highs and tearful lows
Ben is a wonderful pantomime dame
He is a local treasure
And from the very first moment he steps on to the stage
He has the audience hooked on his every word
His comic timing is genius
Photo by Pamela Raith Photography
Last night there was another with brilliant timing
The fabulously flamboyant baddie
Marc Pickering as Demon Destiny
The best pantomime villain I have ever seen
He was dastardly and demonic
And very very funny
Photo by Pamela Raith Photography
I heard lots of children telling parents
That the baddie was their favourite
He totally stole my heart and I told him so after the show!
William adored him too
He is busy making an animation
Of Lego figures that have sound effects linked to their every move!
Demon Destiny enters the stage to The White Stripes Seven Nation Army
And when that happened we knew he was going to be wonderful
And he truly was
Awesome!
Esther’s favourite characters were Jilly, Charlie and Billy
The children of Mother Goose
Both Esther and William had been looking forward to seeing Dr Ranj
He was very good as Charlie
He dazzled everyone with his fantastic dancing and fabulous costumes
Photo by Pamela Raith Photography
Esther loved the big production numbers
She loves watching children in shows
And the young villagers in Mother Goose were brilliant
Esther would like to audition for The Marlowe Pantomime one day
What comes across when you watch the pantomime at The Marlowe
Is the feel of the cast being a family
And that every single person
Without exception
Is loving what they do
There is so much humour, joy and camaraderie on the stage
And behind the scenes
The feeling of festive frivolity and fun is highly contagious
You will not be able to watch Mother Goose without
Shouting, whooping, singing
Lunging (It’s the lawwww!!) dancing, clapping
‘and so on and so forth…’
One of the great things about The Marlowe Panto
Is that the audience are always very much part of the show
There are traditions that feature year after year
Actors that return year after year
And for us coming to Mother Goose felt very much like coming home
William loves The Bench
And the oh so famous ghost routine
How we sang and shouted for that
It is such a special moment in the pantomime
William also adores the infamous
‘Barrow of Pun’
This genius routine is pure delight for anyone like my boy
Who loves a little word play
We would love to see a compilation video
Of all the ‘Barrow of Pun’ sketches from over the years
They make us laugh so hard that our tummies hurt
Throughout this festive feast of carefully crafted calamity and mishap
My children
Amidst their joy and excitement kept asking
Was that supposed to happen?
I love how much they love the devices of pantomime
And how much they are learning about this traditional kind of show
I am so pleased that my children will grow up with Ben Roddy as their Dame
They are very lucky!
As well as familiarity, inclusion and traditions
The pantomime also needs something new
To keep it fresh
This year Mother Goose did not disappoint
When a motorcycle stunt act
Straight from Planet Circus
Took centre stage
Just WOW!
I think we all forgot to breathe for a moment
A magical festive offering
A beautifully told traditional tale
With ALL the twists you can possibly imagine
And many that you could never dream
A story with a modern moral
A pantomime with heart
And an 8 foot goose!
If you are yet to book your pantomime tickets this season
I urge you with all my heart
To help Ben Roddy celebrate 10 years at The Marlowe
By booking tickets to see Mother Goose
They say
There ain’t nothing like a dame
We say
There ain’t no dame like Ben Roddy
Photo by Pamela Raith Photography
My children are already asking to go back and see it again
And I feel just the same
We would like to sit on the other side of the auditorium
So we are in front of Demon Destiny!!
Aaaaaahhhhh
‘We’ll have to do it again then won’t we!’
We were gifted three tickets for the press night performance. All gushing thoughts are my own and from the heart x