Panto is back!!
The annual Christmas panto is back at the Wyvern Theatre, much to the clear delight of the audience, the cast, Wyvern staff and me! Panto definitely kicks off the start of festive season for me!
This year’s offering, Jack and the Beanstalk sees the Swindon debut of audience favourite Louie Spence as the Spirit of the Beans and although panto relies on the comedy of its headline actors with the fairytale storyline being a second thought, the Wyvern have cast strong performers in all roles this year.
Zack Guest plays a genuinely charismatic Jack, West End star Millie O’Connell comes in as the sassy Queen Fussybutt, Rebecca Jardine is the sweet love interest of Jack and sister to the Queen. Samuel Parker has the audience, well the kids in the audience, entranced as Silly Billy and Danny Lane played an excellent villain, Fleshcreep.
2021 also sees the return of my favourite panto dame Matt Rixon as Dame Trott – I am surprised this is only Matt’s second Swindon Panto though, it genuinely feels like he’s been wowing Swindon audiences forever!
As you would expect with any panto , there is lots of audience interaction – from booing Fleshcreep whenever he appears to whooping (and screaming) when the Spirit of the Beans pirouettes his way onto the stage.
Of course there are also the good old traditional chorus’s of “They’re behind you!” and such, but overall Simon Aylins’s script, which combines pop songs including Olly Murs, Little Mix and even some Meatloaf, is very light on the smut and the satire but is warm and thoroughly family-friendly.
Overall Jack and the Beanstalk flows well and only the most humorless of Swindonians can fail to be amused by the goings-on.
If you haven’t secured your seats already, I highly recommend you book as soon as possible for what promises to be another sell out production.
Jack and the Beanstalk is running at Wyvern Theatre until Sunday January 2nd, 2022.
