Pantomime Review: Cinderella, Empire Theatre, Liverpool

Image Source: Mark McNulty

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Format: Pantomime
Genre: Comedy
Date: December 19 2017
Location: Empire Theatre, Liverpool

The Empire Theatre has always been at the heart of Liverpool's pantomime scene during the festive season, and the venue delivers another panto-tastic experience for all the family with Cinderella.

The story is well-known: Cinders (Olivia Sloyan) struggles to make headway in her life because of her two wicked step-sisters (Daniel Taylor, who plays Hernia, and James Templeton, who plays Verruca), but a chance meeting with Prince Charming (Duncan James), accompanied by his servant Dandini (Scott Mobley), changes that. Not to mention the intervention of both her friend Buttons (John Evans) and The Fairy Godmother (Jodie Prenger), both of whom help Cinderella to keep her head up and her hopes high for a better future.

That appears to come when the Prince, himself looking for love, announces a grand ball, partly so that he can properly meet Cinderella. Hernia and Verruca do their best to foil Cinders' chances of attending, but The Fairy Godmother again provides assistance, which allows Cinders to go to the ball. Then ... well, you probably know the rest from that point onwards.

John Evans as Buttons is the funniest performer on the show, as well as being the character who does the most work and appears in the most scenes. His first appearance takes on a stand-up feel, but it's his exchanges with the other characters which really get the big laughs, particularly when the likes of The Fairy Godmother are trying to keep a straight face when speaking to him. Indeed, for the adults at least, John is the performer they're most likely to remember when all is said and done.

Elsewhere, Jodie Prenger and Olivia Sloyan are very good singers, and of course, the singing is elevated further by the presence of Duncan James, best known away from the pantomime scene for being a member of Blue. Beyond that, certain scenes deliver a lot of laughs, and the deliberately Scouse lingo (with insults like "blurt" and "melt" coming out of nowhere) by Daniel Taylor and James Templeton provide additional unexpected giggles. The production standards are also very high, with extravagant lighting, excellent settings (particularly for Prince Charming's ballroom), and one particularly memorable scene that takes us into intermission, which I won't spoil here (hint: it is horse-related).

On the downside, the show started pretty late, and it took a bit of time to get going. Also, some of the lighting was occasionally too strong, with a couple of the lights situated near the front of the stage giving off a blinding effect on more than one occasion. And the younger dancers played an unusually minor role in proceedings. Still, there was a lot more to like about this show, from the hilarious scene where Muddles uses actual song lyrics to describe how he's feeling to the exceptional costumes donned by all, particularly in the second half.

With Christmas just days away, there is still plenty of time for you to bring the family along to see Cinderella; you'll have a great time, I can assure you.

Overall Rating: 8/10 - Very Good

Theatre Review: A Midsummer Night's Dream

Written By: Mark Armstrong and Alison Jones

Format: Play
Genre: Comedy
Date: April 25 2017
Location: Epstein Theatre, Liverpool, England

It's a testament to the work of William Shakespeare that over 400 years after his death, his plays are still being performed by some of the leading theatre actors and actresses in not only Liverpool, but around the country. This incarnation of A Midsummer Night's Dream, however, marked the first Shakespeare performance to hit the Epstein Theatre, so it was an ambitious undertaking by director and performer Daniel Taylor (who I interviewed about the show last week, which you can read here); however, he and the team delivered a strong production, and a worthy, modern take on one of Shakespeare's most notable stories.

Set in and around Athens, Ancient Greece, it's a tale which embodies how the course of true love does not run smooth. Four young lovers, two doting couples, are suddenly trapped within the dream-esque stranglehold of a spooky, enchanted forest. In this dark setting, the bizarre and imaginative Puck (James Templeton) reigns supreme, possessing powers which extend beyond belief, assisted by evil sprites and fairies. In the meantime, however, there is an ongoing dispute between the Fairy King, Oberon (Johnny Schumacher), and Fairy Queen, Titania (Sharon Byatt), all while Bottom (the aforementioned Daniel Taylor) and his friends are planning to put on a theatre production of their own; it's a play within a play, especially once performed.

Puck, a real mischief-maker whose power and twisted sense of humour have no boundaries, is there to make sure that the journeys that all involved take are anything but simple, with fantasy, love, deception, humour and dreams all coming together in one unpredictable and eye-catching production. However, his failure to undertake Oberon’s commands efficiently, and his error of smearing the juice of a magic love flower onto the wrong people, ends up being the catalyst of much confusion and hilarity. Humans are made to love the wrong partners, and Titania falls in love with an actor who has been given the head of a donkey! In the end, of course, magic sets things right and humans find their true loves. Oberon realises that his love for Titania is stronger than his pride.

Daniel Taylor, as Bottom, really brings the play to life with plenty of verbal and physical humour, along with interesting facial expressions which perfectly capture the ridiculousness of not only the situations, but also of the Bottom character as a whole. The eventual performance of the "play within a play" provides plenty of slapstick humour, which to me was the highlight of the show as a whole.

Despite the simplicity of the set, the play was very atmospheric with dry ice and just a few musicians behind a transparent screen, giving off an ethereal feel. There was a lot of audience engagement, with actors spending time out in the stalls and circle of the theatre, and interacting in the "play within a play".

Shakespeare brings together two worlds: the human world of Athens and the fairy world of the woods outside the city, one ruled by law and one by magic, and Taylor's version of this classic tale is effectively conveyed, both from a storytelling and a visual standpoint. Puck, the mischievous elf, told the story throughout, and despite actor James Templeton running the London Marathon only two days before, his athletic and enthusiastic performance pulled the scenes together and made sense of it all. The audience expressed their approval with much applause, and the play closed with a short musical piece.

Shakespeare's plays have a large following to this day, and for those who enjoy the works of Shakespeare and the fantasy elements coming to life on stage, Daniel Taylor's version of A Midsummer Night's Dream is a well-performed and attention-grabbing production which I recommend all Shakespeare fans should see.

Overall Rating: 8/10 - Very Good

Daniel Taylor: "We Want The Audience To Forget That They're Watching Shakespeare"

Image Source: Twitter

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Provided By: Epstein Theatre

When you say "theatre", a lot of people, especially those of an older generation, will automatically think "Shakespeare". So, it's a surprise that the Epstein Theatre has yet to host a play written by the legendary English writer. But that's all about to change, as Daniel Taylor, manager of Daniel Taylor Productions, is bringing his adaptation of A Midsummer Night's Dream to the Epstein. We spoke to Daniel about the show and his own background, as well as his own connection with the works of the iconic playwright.

Firstly, tell us about A Midsummer Night's Dream.

I would say that it's Shakespeare's version of "sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll"; that's probably the best way of explaining it! It's about merriment, there's humour, it's farce, there's mis-identity; all of those things that Shakespeare would use so often in his plays, but I think these elements are best used in this story. It's a play about a Duke who is getting married, it's about four lovers who are all mismatched and they get drugged. I would say it's also about the mortal world and the fairy world clashing. It's on for a few days at the Epstein Theatre, and as I said, the best description would be "sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll".

Have you always had a keen interest in Shakespeare's work?

Yeah! I'm a songwriter as well, and I've always liked Shakespeare's sonnets more than anything. I think Shakespeare was a bit misunderstood, because people sometimes think "Oh Shakespeare, that's for really intelligent people!" But Shakespeare was actually a working class man who wrote for royalty, so he was actually the same as us, and he created around 30,000 words for the English language that we still use today; words that we're quite familiar with, or words within his text that are derivatives of the words that we use today. I don't see it as a huge leap in that way, but the imagery and how he would describe things; the language is just stunning. So, I'm definitely a big fan of Shakespeare.

This will be the first time that a Shakespeare play has been performed at the Epstein Theatre. What was the importance of bringing this show to the Epstein?

The Epstein obviously has a long history with people in the city; it certainly does with my family. My granddad became a policeman, and when the police went on strike, he volunteered and became a desk sergeant. So, he became really important, and from there he would put on a lot of charity shows at the theatre, in the days when it was the Crane Theatre, when there was a piano shop below. That's why that theatre was built, to practice the pianos. There's a great story behind the whole theatre itself, and I think for it to have been so long without anything like this, I think that's important in itself. Liverpool's got lots of amazing theatres: the Empire, which is a touring house; Unity, which focuses on art; the Royal Court, which has local shows geared to people who may not normally go to theatre shows. All of the theatres have a place and a personality in the city, and I think that the Epstein is equally important. I think it's an absolute jewel in the city. Plus I've worked with a lot of people from the city who have gone off and worked on amazing jobs, such as Chloe (Taylor), who had the lead role in Wicked, one of the biggest shows in the world, and James (Templeton), who was in Jesus Christ Superstar, not to mention the Blood Brothers contingent there as well. There's lots of people who have gone away and done things, and have come back to perform in this show. It's really exciting!

Tell us about your background, and about Daniel Taylor Productions.

I was born in Liverpool, as were my family. The reason I put this production company together was for a show about Tommy Cooper, and it kind of snowballed a bit from there. The Tommy Cooper Show has now done over 40 venues throughout the UK, and it's a three-hander celebration of his life. The production company helps to keep the show going, because theatres that we've been to would say "What have you got next?" We didn't really have anything ready, but I was keen to do some Shakespeare, and I saw that they haven't done anything like this, so I thought "let's keep this going", let's see if we can create something there. That's how it's all come about, really.

What are some of your biggest shows to date, and which shows can we expect in the future?

I've just been playing John Lennon in the show Lennon Through A Glass Onion. It's a show endorsed by Yoko Ono, and we've taken it to the United States and Canada. We've just finished up in Los Angeles. It started in Liverpool, and it then went on an eight-country tour. I believe that we'll be going back to the States sometime soon. So, there's that, and obviously I've got a big connection with Blood Brothers (I played Sammy in that show for years), I've played Tommy Cooper, and I did Down The Dock Road for Alan Bleasdale last year too. I played the role that was written for Mickey Finn. He was the stuff of legend, and he sadly passed away last year. That was a big thing for me, to work with somebody like Alan Bleasdale was amazing, because he's a contemporary. He'd probably hate that I said that as he's not that kind of fellah, but he's definitely a contemporary genius of some kind amongst playwrights. He's similar to Willy Russell, those kind of writers who have come from within the city.

Which characters should people look out for when watching this show?

There's obviously Bottom; he's the class clown, if you like. There's Mechanicals in the play that they're putting on for the Duke, and he wants to play all of the parts. It's quite funny: he's very clown-like, so he's fun to watch, but then there's characters like Puck, who's Oberon's sidekick, and I think the kids who see this show are going to be really wowed by the whole fairy world, which is played brilliantly. I'll be honest, whatever happens next week, if I've done anything, I've definitely cast the play as best as I could, because they're all brilliant in their own way, as they're all stellar actors. They've all gone out there and done good stuff, and they're still persevering with it all and improving even more, but they've all done phenomenal things, so it's kind of a way of bringing people back together. As characters, there's the lovers, the mis-identity with the lovers, the whole farce situation there, the Mechanicals. I don't think there are any characters that people wouldn't be taken by, but I'd say that Puck and Bottom stand out a little bit more.

Finally, what can the Liverpool audience expect from A Midsummer Night's Dream?

My big thing with this has always been that if you watch Shakespeare, if you know that you're watching Shakespeare, then it's not being done right. We want the audience to follow this and forget that they're watching Shakespeare; I want to get rid of that whole thing, so that people can just follow this great story. Shakespeare's stories have influenced film, books, all kinds of things, and they still do to this day. His influence on a lot of things that we do and take for granted is still very much relevant today. I want to give the audience a good night out, because it's funny, it's magical, it's mischief, and it's a wonderful, wonderful story. It was around 400 years or so ago, when Shakespeare was around, and yet people are still doing his plays, so there's your answer as to what people can expect.

A Midsummer Night's Dream will be performed at the Epstein Theatre from Tuesday April 25 to Saturday April 29. To book your tickets, click here.

Lennon Through A Glass Onion

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Format: Musical
Genre: Comedy Drama
Date: September 6 2016
Location: Epstein Theatre, Liverpool, England

The story of The Beatles, and of John Lennon in particular, has been told countless times, and in a theatre setting, this usually consists of a feel-good round-up of classic Beatles tunes. Lennon Through A Glass Onion, however, is very different, and the show succeeds because of this alternative approach.

Inspired by one of John's solo hits, Lennon Through A Glass Onion tells the story of his career from the perspective of John himself. Well, from Daniel Taylor who plays John; but he is so authentic in his look, his mannerisms, his dialect and, of course, his singing that many onlookers have noted that when watching this show, for a brief moment you almost forget that you are watching playing the role of Lennon, which is as high a compliment as one could possibly provide.

The storytelling comes in two forms: the music, with the show including plenty of Lennon's biggest hits and his main contributions to The Beatles, and the dialogue, whereby we are told from a first-person perspective about what Lennon thought and how he approached everything from his schooldays to his initial meeting with Paul McCartney to key events like moving to America, the split of the band and the birth of his first child. And some of Lennon's more negative traits are acknowledged; it would be wrong to say that they are excused, but there's almost a sense of pride in Lennon being true to himself, and noting that what seemed like "bad boy" or weird behaviour to others seemed entirely normal to the four lads from Liverpool.

A key member of the team is Stewart D'Arrietta, who does an outstanding job of bringing music to Taylor's performances via his piano, as well as showcasing some occasional acting skills of his own. Whilst Daniel is front and centre playing the role of John Lennon, it's clearly a two-man operation, and the show is taken to a higher level thanks to the contributions of D'Arrietta.

It's interesting to note that besides Daniel playing his guitar and the aforementioned piano soundtrack, no other background music is used during any of the tunes, which is a testament to the skills of the performers. At no point are additional instruments used in famous songs missed or even notable in their absence; the music is different to what we normally hear, but it is so effective that the musical performances are enhanced rather than weakened. Add to that the clever use of colourful lighting and spotlights when appropriate for various songs, the humorous aspects during some of the stories and the chilling manner in which Lennon's death is handled, along with an almost haunting yet extremely powerful rendition of Imagine to close proceedings, and you have yourself one hell of a show.

Longtime Beatles fans may be disappointed that so many of their most famous numbers are not included in the show. But this is not a Beatles show; it's a John Lennon show, almost as if Lennon has risen from the dead to tell you his story from his perspective, and that covers his personal life just as much, if not more so, as  his public persona. The language is a bit choice at times, but those who knew and loved Lennon and his bandmates will most likely be of an older age group, so this shouldn't be a problem to them.

If you get a chance to see Lennon Through A Glass Onion, I highly recommend that you do. Bear in mind that this is by no means a Beatles tribute show, but a unique and very well-presented tale of the life and times of John Lennon. Daniel, Stewart and writer John Waters should be proud of this production; I found it to be exceptional, and would suggest that Lennon fans of all ages should make an attempt to see it.

Overall Rating: 9/10 - Outstanding