Anyone remember the bit in Sleeping Beauty with the velociraptor named Kevin? Me neither. But an incongruous dinosaur sidekick is just one of the wonderfully silly additions to this take on the fairytale, along with a daft classroom routine, some capering ghouls and a regiment of toy soldiers come to life.
Now in the fifth year of its current formula, helmed by panto veteran Paul Hendy as writer-producer, the York Theatre Royal’s festive offering feels solidly bedded in. It’s reliably crowd-pleasing and family-friendly, with a string of familiar set pieces to delight those who come back year after year. We know there will be the slop scene, the ghost bench, the pun-packed comedy routine, the pre-interval spectacle. Part of the joy is in waiting for these moments and wondering what new twist will be put on them.
The secret ingredient is Theatre Royal favourite Robin Simpson as the dame – in this case, Princess Aurora’s thrice-widowed protector Nurse Nellie. While some of the show’s jokes about things going wrong feel rather too rehearsed, there’s always an unpredictable twinkle in Simpson’s eye and he’s at his best when riffing on genuine slip-ups. This year’s usual bit of audience interaction with a male spectator who catches the dame’s eye lands with a particularly brilliant gag, leaving cast as well as audience gasping for breath between laughs.
There’s strong supporting work from returning Tommy Carmichael in the Buttons-style role of Jangles, as well as an entertaining double act from CBeebies’ Jennie Dale and seasoned musical theatre performer Jocasta Almgill as the good and bad fairies respectively. But what’s slightly lost in this offering – aside from a cursory sprinkling of easy cracks at Hull and Nigel Farage – is the distinctive local and topical flavour of pantomime at its best.
