Pantomime Review: Sleeping Beauty - St. Helens Theatre Royal, St. Helens

Image Source:
St. Helens Theatre Royal

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Format: Pantomime
Genre: Comedy
Date: October 22 2017
Location: St. Helens Theatre Royal

Pantomimes have increased in number over the last few years. From the usual Christmas tradition, we have been treated to Easter offerings, and now we have another pantomime just in time for Halloween.

Mind you, though there are some ghostly scenes, Sleeping Beauty is all about entertainment and fairy tale-esque magic, bringing smiles to children's faces while eliciting huge laughs from the adults. The great pantos do this seamlessly, and Sleeping Beauty at St. Helens Theatre Royal does a fine job of pulling this off to the point where, by the end, you're left with a positive impression on the characters and the show as a whole.

It did take a bit of time to get going, with the crowd being unusually quiet during the early scenes, but it soon kicked into high gear with the brilliant Tam Ryan, who played Chester The Jester. Many of his lines resulted in big laughs, and his scenes (such as a daft moment where he and the Dame, played by Simon Foster, were preparing edible treats for Princess Aurora's birthday celebration) were the highlights of the show. He was also great at ad-libbing and thinking on his feet during unexpected moments, the funniest being when the Dame's skirt accidentally fell off (fortunately, she/he was covered up to avoid blinding the audience!).

Laura Gregory played her role as the Princess well; Corey Rumble as the Prince was not involved as much as people may have expected, though. Claire Sweeney as Carabosse and Warren Donnelly as the King made up a strong cast (and you can read an interview from those two about this show by clicking here). Elsewhere, the settings were stunning, with great attention to detail (such as chandelier lights using a crown-shaped frame within the palace), and the use of ghosts and similarly scary creatures within the "spooky" tower gave this show more of a Halloween-esque feel than you would normally expect. There was also a varied soundtrack throughout the show, as well as performances of some recognisable numbers such as Kool & The Gang's Celebration.

Perhaps the funniest aspect of the show came towards the end, when a number of children were invited for some audience participation with prizes at stake. There's an old saying in show business about the unpredictability of working with children, and that thought popped up watching this part of the performance as the kids stole the show with hilariously high-pitched laughs, amusing answers and a feeling of independence when running around on stage. Chester played up to this brilliantly in his one way, making this the most memorable scene of the whole evening. The adults found this to be uproarious, as they did during other scenes where the "risqué" element of pantomime was taken as far as I've ever seen.

On the downside, there were a couple of issues with the special effects, as the pyrotechnics often left an unnecessarily strong smoky scent in the air, and the lighting was muddled in the closing scene of the first half. I also expected the show as a whole to last a little longer, and the story wasn't quite as strong as it could have been, mostly revolving around the showdown between Carabosse and the Prince, which seemed a little rushed. But the kids were delighted with the show as a whole, which is always the most important thing.

So, if you're looking for somewhere to take the kids this half-term, or even if you're an adult who is looking for a fun day out, then Sleeping Beauty is a terrific option to deliver a lot of laughs for all of the family.

Overall Rating: 8/10 - Very Good

Theatre Interview: Claire Sweeney & Warren Donnelly - "There's Nothing Quite Like Pantomime"

Image Source:
St. Helens Theatre Royal

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Nothing beats a good panto. Whether you're young, old or somewhere in between, a pantomime is a great experience filled with capers, music, dancing and a fair few risqué jokes! Sleeping Beauty is the next such panto on the agenda, as it heads to St. Helens Theatre Royal. Before the cast down their hats, frocks and capes, we spoke to two of the main players in Sleeping Beauty, Claire Sweeney and Warren Donnelly, who provided an insight into the show and their backgrounds in pantomime, theatre and beyond!

First of all, tell us about your roles in Sleeping Beauty.

Warren Donnelly: Well, I'm the King, a nice jolly King who rules the nice jolly Kingdom, but who unfortunately tangles with the evil Carabosse. So, it's a very nice role, it's a funny role, there's lots of excitement and adventure, and I'm having a whale of a time doing it.

Claire Sweeney: I play the evil Queen Carabosse. She's an absolute horror! She's pure evil through and through, but by the end of the show, she sees the light and becomes good!

What previous pantomime experience do the two of you have?

Warren: There have been many, many great pantomimes. They're always great.

Claire: We've had one together; we did a panto together at the Liverpool Empire, so it's nice to be back working together again!

Warren: The one thing about a panto is that there's nothing else quite like it, so it's all good fun.

Claire, what led to your big break playing Lindsey Corkhill on Brookside in 1989?

Claire: I simply auditioned and got the part. That was it, really. I was a singer before that. I'd done loads and loads of singing, and I hadn't done any acting. Brookside was my first acting role, so I kind of learned on the job.

Warren, tell us about your career prior to earning the role of Stan Waterman in Shameless.

Warren: I was very lucky. I was just an actor auditioning for lots of things, doing a lot of theatre shows and some bits of television, and out of the blue, an audition came through for Shameless for what was meant to be one episode, and it carried on from there.

Claire, since leaving Brookside, you've appeared on many television programmes including Celebrity Big Brother and Loose Women. What were some of your highlights from this period of your career?

Claire: The highlight of my career was performing in Guys and Dolls on the West End, working opposite Patrick Swayze. That was definitely my career highlight.

As you mention, you've also built up quite the theatre career. which productions stand out as being particularly significant for you, and what is the difference between performing in a major theatre show and performing in a pantomime?

Claire: I suppose there is a lot more discipline in a major stage show, as it's a lot more regimental and stricter. We do need some discipline when performing a panto, but there is more freedom to go off-script and have a little bit more fun, I suppose. You also break the fourth wall with panto; you turn and talk to the audience, whereas when I was performing in Tell Me On A Sunday or Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, you don't stop to talk to the audience.

Warren, you've also appeared in other television shows and movies. How was the experience of being on set for Going Off Big Time and Millions?

Warren: It was good fun. Going Off Big Time was really fun to shoot. It was the same with Millions; to be honest with you, for all the acting experience that I've had, I haven't had too many bad ones. It's good to be working, and it's good to be doing a variety of things in panto and film. They've all got their own disciplines; they're all about working hard and having fun. If you're an actor performing and you're working with nice people, you've got nothing to complain about!

Warren, you recently played Geoff Smith in Holby City. What are your future plans within television?

Warren: I'm doing a television job immediately after this pantomime, and then after that, who knows? It's the life of an actor; you go from job to job or you don't, but you're constantly looking for work, you're constantly pushing yourself and promoting yourself, and you see what happens. It's not like a lot of careers where you know what you're doing from one week to the next, or from one month to the next. Quite often, you don't know. You might think that you're doing nothing, and then you get one phone call from your agent and suddenly you're mad busy. So, I'm going to keep on doing what I've always done, and that's keeping on, as the old cliché goes.

Finally, tell us why people should come along to St. Helens Theatre Royal to see Sleeping Beauty?

Claire: Well, first of all, it's half term, so it's something great for the kids to do during half term, which is lovely! I have to say that the cast is phenomenal. I've been working with them all; Warren is a brilliant actor anyway, but the rest of the cast has just great talent. It's a beautiful show, there are great songs in it, and there's lots of laughter in it. I just think it's something brilliant for the kids to do during half term.

Warren: What always amazes me is that even though we're living in 2017, where children are so sophisticated, what the children and families still like is a good story that is well-told. There's songs, there's dances and there's loads of audience participation. Also, the Theatre Royal up here in St. Helens is lovely; it's a hidden gem. So over half time, why not get your kids out, take them to see a very good show, and you never know, they might decide in years to come to do a bit of acting, singing and dancing themselves. I used to go to pantos myself as a little boy, and I used to love it, so why not get them out of the house and see our show!

Sleeping Beauty runs at St. Helens Theatre Royal from Saturday October 21 to Sunday October 29. To book your tickets, click here.