It’s that time of year again. Deck the halls and all that and check out the local pantomimes. It’s not always easy to find a show that will appeal as much to granny as it will to your eight year old but I am delighted to say that we happen to be particularly fortunate in this neck of wood as we have one the best – a sparkling new production of that perennial favourite Aladdin.
It has just opened for a three-week run at the Lighthouse Centre for the Arts in Poole and really is perfect entertainment for all the family.
Lighthouse has long punched well above its weight in the panto stakes and once again it has enlisted the talents of writer, director and performer Chris Jarvis to work alongside its creative team to deliver a pantomime that really ticks all the right boxes.
Picture: Jayne Jackso Ph0tography
Chris knows his stuff. The CBeebies favourite is positively steeped in panto lore. He’s starred in, written and directed festive shows for years and learnt his craft from some of the biggest and best names in the business. It really shows. Chris is a good actor, an excellent writer and a brilliant communicator and above all he understands the psychology of performing for all ages.
This Aladdin, in which he stars as Widow Twankey, is smart, witty and full of festive fun, laughter and music. It offers a clever contemporary take on the time-honoured story without losing any of its traditional appeal and wisely avoids any awkward racial stereotyping and misguided innuendo.
Here’s Hattie Miles’ review
Aladdin at Lighthouse, Poole
From the moment the curtain rises, Aladdin at Lighthouse is a winner. A brilliant cast make this modern take on the traditional story full of vitality, hilarity and slapstick fun. Written and directed by CBeebies favourite Chris Jarvis, who also stars as a wonderfully funny Widow Twankey, the show romps along and engages the audience right from the very beginning. Twankey’s array of costumes are fabulous – they include nods to King Charles, Dame Shirley Bassey and the RNLI.
Genie of the lamp (Alim Jadavji), is obsessed with game shows, and makes the quest to find the lamp, hidden deep in a cave on the Jurassic Coast, real fun and Professor Pocus (Andrew Pollard) makes a magnificent and amusing baddy – the packed audience loved booing him. There’s fine performances too from Aladdin (Benjamin Armstrong), Wishee Washee (Josh Haberfield), Princess Jasmin (Ionica Adriana), the Spirit of the Ring (Stephanie Walker) and the Queen (Jo Michaels Barrington).
There is so much in this show including great music from live musicians led by musical director Adam Tuffrey. It would have been worth going to just to see the rendition of The Twelve Days of Christmas that had Widow Twankey, Princess Jasmine and Wishee Washee racing around the stage and interacting with an uproarious audience. There were also marvelous special effects. A proper flying carpet of course, and a clever virtual flight from the Lighthouse stage to the hidden cave on the Dorset coast. The audience joined in and had the most wonderful time right through this excellent pantomime. Highly recommended. – Hattie Miles
Aladdin runs at Lighthouse until New Year’s Eve (Sunday 31st December)