Watersmeet: Aladdin ***** (From Watford Observer)

Watersmeet: Aladdin *****

MYSTERY, magic and mayhem make one thoroughly enjoyable rendition of Aladdin, this year’s panto extravaganza at The Watersmeet.

Playing to a near-capacity house at Monday’s matinee performance, the cast wasted no time in warming the audience up with a dazzling sequence, featuring some spectacular choreography performed by youngsters at The Maria Anderson School of Dance.

The comedy also starts early thanks to The Citrus Brothers, aka Mike Goble and Matt Blossom, who take on the roles of bumbling policemen Ping & Pong.

Jonathan Eio as Aladdin shows a charm and innocence that naturally appeals to younger members of the audience.

Eternal singer Kelle Bryan is perfectly cast as Princess Jasmine and has beautiful vocal talents to match – her rendition of Hero all but leaves the version recorded by The X Factor finalists in the dust. Eio and Bryan, as the romantic leads, also perform a sweet rendition of Kylie Minogue’s In Your Arms.

Maurice Thorogood, who directs and plays the evil Abanazar, wholeheartedly encourages the boos and hisses from the audience. Young hecklers brave enough to answer him back were wittily shot down within seconds, adding to the entertainment value of this feelgood panto.

Gareth Davies gave a suitably pompous turn as the Emperor of China. Special praise should be given for his Sand Dance, which had the audience rolling in the aisles with laughter.

Another star of the show was Bristolian John Brenner as Widow Twankey. Wry, outrageous and suitably camp, Brenner dazzled as much with his improvised brand of humour as he did with his quick-paced costume changes (which became more outlandish as the show progresses). His rendition of Twankey, sang along to Amy Winehouse’s Valerie (while wearing a large beehive wig), really brought his terrific panto dame humour to the fore.

But it was former Blue Peter presenter Peter Duncan who really deserves the most applause for his turn as Wishee Washee.

Bounding around the stage and building a natural rapport with the audience, Duncan helps keep up the bouncy pace of this fun-filled show.

Until Sunday, January 4, 2009