Panto's 60th Birthday
Red Riding Hood
1st-
When the first brightly coloured posters started appearing around the village, in
this magazine, in newspapers and websites early in 2007 we knew that the village
was going to have something special this year! In case you missed any of the advance
publicity (Woldingham Day Balloons, Characters meet-
Old favourite (hey, not so much of the old...) Sarah Greenwood returned to the director's chair to usher in our celebratory show and it became clear very early on that the only show to do was (an updated version of) the original panto of 60 years ago... Red Riding Hood. Together with Helen Brymer, who stepped up this year to take on the mantle of Musical Director, and Claire Bishop as Choreographer, this show was promising to be one to remember... and they didn't let us down!
The curtains opened to reveal a beautifully colourful set (designed by Simon Aggiss)
and a healthy mix of faces old and new dressed in an incredible assortment of costumes
(again amazingly designed and made by Marian Nicholson) reflecting the past 60 years
of Panto. For the keen eyed in the audience, there were characters from previous
pantos going back many years... this opening scene alone was enough to bring a tear
to the eye. Before the audience could take a breath, the cast launched into a spectacular
number preparing us for a wonderful assortment of musical treats... Particularly
memorable were the harmonious duets between Red Riding Hood (newcomer Rhiannon Thomas)
and Robin Hood (Louise Wilkinson returning as Principal Boy), Simple Simon (another
newcomer Peter Calver) and his breaking-
There were laughs aplenty from panto favourites new and old... James Peacock moved
over to the not-
And what of the children, dancers and chorus... resplendent in a delicious array of costumes? We were wonderfully entertained by a stunning assortment of panto characters past and present all singing and dancing such delightful numbers which beautifully complemented the lovers' duets and comedy numbers. For those who like operetta, we were also treated to the comedy trio of Tough and Ruthless with the Sheriff singing 'Three Little Maids' and 'Pirates of Penzance Policemen Song' with great voice. But if this wasn't to your fancy, there was also the great comedy number 'This Thing called Love' sung by Ziggi and the Merry Men and 'Greased Lightening' from Tough and Ruthless with the children, which both had everyone up and dancing. It's impossible for this review to do justice to such a fantastic show... if you didn't see it you'll be kicking yourself for the next 60 years!
The performances from the lead characters were exemplary... While Tough and Ruthless expertly kept the audience on their toes, we were entertained by petulant Red Riding Hood tormenting poor Wolf, Simple Simon wooing Felicity to great comedic effect, sweet fumbling fairies Tinkle and Belle trying to help kind Queen Fairy defeat the Witch (which they did with great aplomb), and a tragic Robin Hood unable to be with his love Red Riding Hood and prevented from killing the Wolf by Granny brought tears of sadness and laughter to our eyes. But the cream on the top of the 60th birthday cake had to be the wonderfully funny Dame warning her children off their suitors (until she realised they were rich) and the ever so entertaining Merry Men who couldn't take anything seriously.
But none of this could have happened if it wasn't for the amazing people behind the scenes, both in the run up to the performances and during the shows. Putting on a spectacular production like this is an amazing feat and we're all very grateful to them all. There are far too many too mention here, but if you want to know more and see the photos from the show... or even buy a memento DVD... check the panto website at www.woldinghampanto.co.uk for all this and more. Thank you not only for such a great 60th show, but also for entertaining us for the past 60 years. May we continue to see such amazing talent for another 60!
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(... and from the Feb'08 Woldingham Village Magazine)
The 60th Anniversary Woldingham Pantomime
January 2008
Red Riding Hood
Directed by Sarah Greenwood
The first ever panto in Woldingham was Red Riding Hood, produced by the WI in 1948 and probably performed in the Club House at North Downs Golf Club. This panto was next performed in 1966, so, like England winning the Football World Cup, another repetition was well overdue!
The show got off to a flying start with an extremely energetic and harmonious chorus number which immediately engaged the audience. The set and costumes were, as throughout, very colourful as the villagers welcomed us into their community, somewhere in Sherwood Forest.
Poor Mother Hubbard (ably played in Northern dialect) by Tony Dent then explained her predicament; no money, no husband, two kids and about to be evicted from her pub by the wicked Sheriff. (Do not worry, although this plot sounds like Eastenders, be assured that we were in for a hilarious evening).
Daughter, Red Riding Hood (played and beautifully sung by Rhiannon Thomas) was constantly under threat of assuaging the appetite of the poor starving Wicked Wolf (appealingly played by Chris Chaplin, in a wonderfully constructed costume).
Thanks to the intervention of Robin Hood (the marvellously leggy, thigh slappy and melodious principal boy, Louise Wilkinson), Red Riding Hood escaped this fate, eventually to become Mrs Hood.
Son, Simple Simon (Peter Calver) was extremely bouncy and happy and encouraged us all to greet him every time he appeared, which we were very pleased to do. In true panto style he sang and danced his way into a fine match with Felicity (Krysza Szafranski), the public health official sent to check out the pub.
Trying very hard to prevent the happy ending was the nasty old Sheriff of Nottingham, grumpily played by the really very nice John Lacy. He was assisted by his two incredibly hapless policemen, Tough (James Peacock) and Ruthless (Chris Mikami). Their portrayal of these two chumps was reminiscent of Stan and Ollie, both in physique and comic effect, to the evident enjoyment of the audience.
As if all this was not enough, we had the delightful good fairies, Belle (Sarah Coldwell), Tinkle (Louise Martin) and their Queen (Kathryn Bancroft), the wonderfully dotty witch (played with great eccentricity and a marvellous nose by Matthew Martin), a very amusing troupe of Merry Men and an enthusiastic and well drilled singing and dancing chorus.
The music, under the direction of Helen Brymer and the vast stage team of constructors, painters, costumiers, sound and lighting technicians and others too numerous to mention, under the management of Simon Aggiss provided a marvellous surround to all the singing, dancing and mayhem which the cast provided.
All of this confusion was extremely well pulled together under the guiding hand of director Sarah Greenwood who deserves our congratulations and thanks on producing a most entertaining evening.
The panto is such an important element of village life, bringing together the generations and acting as a common and continuing thread for numerous different sections of the community. It is wonderful to see all the children taking part with such enthusiasm in an enterprise which they will remember all their lives.
The audience invests a couple of hours each year in the panto; the participants, under the guidance of the committee so enthusiastically led by Simon and Liz Aggiss, invest many hundreds (if not thousands!) of hours throughout the year. They deserve our congratulations and immense thanks.
(For details of this and previous pantomimes, including photographs and full lists of participants, please see the website www.woldinghampanto.co.uk).
Gary Pollack