The renaissance of the Catford panto under erstwhile Hackney Empire boss Susie McKenna continues apace with this energetic and spikey romp through a relatively esoteric choice of seasonal fairytale.
The setting is Lewishonia, a medieval-style kingdom in which humans and magical creatures live in harmony. It’s bordered by the distinctly Brexity realm of Westminsteria, where ‘magicals’ are banned with extreme prejudice. As the story begins, the newborn Princess Tahlia of Lewishonia has her hand pledged to Prince Gabriel of Westminsteria – but not for another 18 years, when the baby is of age.
Unfortunately the evil fairy Carrabosse (Lisa Davina Phillip) wasn’t invited and, long story short, she puts a curse on Tahlia that means she has to spend her entire childhood in hiding.
What McKenna excels at is making great ensemble pantos: so many seasonal shows coast on a couple of fun characters with everyone else as wallpaper. Sleeping Beauty feels like the entire character list has been given thought and care, from the bickering trio of fairy godmothers to Ben Fox’s hapless King Eric the Undecided, Wayne Rollins’s affable audience interlocutor Denzel the Dragon, Martin Harding as Carrabosse’s Shakespeare-pedant henchman Etham, and Hamilton alumnus Roshani Abbey as the take-no-shit Tahlia.
Justin Brett’s gangly Dame Nanny Nora is a solid if somewhat-subdued dame, more of a witty sidekick than an out-and-out scene stealer. There’s no denying that McKenna’s greatest foil was Clive Rowe, the long-term Hackney dame who now runs the show out east. It’s notable that Sleeping Beauty and Hackney’s Christmas show Dick Whittington could each use a little of what the other excels at. But where Hackney is sorely lacking any great talent bar Rowe, Catford has a perfectly serviceable dame, and if you don’t like Brett, he’s only one part of a show that comes with a great cast, some impressive special effects, witty subversions of fairytale tropes, and an enjoyable – if occasionally misanthropic – stream of barbs at the British establishment.
It’s a damn good panto in other words, and as a south-east Londoner it’s a thrill to have a local seasonal show that isn’t just a tatty minor celebrity-based abyss. There’s room for improvement if it’s to reach the high watermark of McKenna’s Hackney imperial phase – but with next year’s panto confirmed on stage at the end of this one, room to improve is exactly what this already fine show has been given.