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Post by fiyero on Jan 4, 2022 9:32:14 GMT
It was the usual good fun at today's matinée, but Act 2 was spoilt when the sixty-something woman next to me whipped out her mobile to video Donny Osmond's medley. Her doing that was distracting, but, after I'd excoriated her for doing so and she stopped, I spent the rest of the time feeling bad with myself for being that kind of person and not allowing a bit of laissez-faire. It wasn't a serious piece of theatre, and no harm was being done after all. We had all of the planned "mistakes", and one unplanned, when the curtain was brought down for four minutes in the second act. I agree with those who found Paul Zerdin annoying with his blatant misinformation (twice) about the stooges not being stooges. The pair didn't even do a convincing job of acting like embarrassed audience members. I would have liked a lot less Donny, more than the one variety act -- the hula-hoops-on-fire thing -- and some more musical theatre set-pieces. The flying/rotating magic carpet was particularly well executed, with little of the mechanism visible, even from the centre of the second row of the Stalls. I am feeling generous, so four stars. Act 1: 14:32-15:33 Act 2: 15:57-16:13 & 16:17-16:51 (including technical stop) I had similar thoughts about photos etc... each time I went as a lot of people were there for Donny and at a concert people take photos. But I did notice Front of House and Security were hot on trying to stop it so I think you were in the right to stop her too. They should have done the modern thing of allowing and publicising that you can take photos at curtain call. |
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Post by ladidah on Jan 4, 2022 10:26:25 GMT
I had to cancel my tickets to see this yesterday - Mum is a huge Donny fan.
Hope its on again next year, and with a few new acts and gags.
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Post by Being Alive on Jan 4, 2022 10:57:26 GMT
I had to cancel my tickets to see this yesterday - Mum is a huge Donny fan. Hope its on again next year, and with a few new acts and gags. One would hope that they go back to an actual Panto next year... Am seeing this tomorrow thanks to the board tipping me off about the free National Lottery tickets - have 4 seats in row B Stalls for free! |
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Post by ladidah on Jan 4, 2022 11:06:54 GMT
Enjoy!
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Post by tommy123 on Jan 4, 2022 12:29:08 GMT
Surely this year will be Gary Wilmot’s last. He’s due to start in Wicked and they normally have year long contracts!
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Post by critchyboy on Jan 4, 2022 12:43:36 GMT
I had to cancel my tickets to see this yesterday - Mum is a huge Donny fan. Hope its on again next year, and with a few new acts and gags. One would hope that they go back to an actual Panto next year... Am seeing this tomorrow thanks to the board tipping me off about the free National Lottery tickets - have 4 seats in row B Stalls for free! We got Stalls Row S !!!! |
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Post by alece10 on Jan 4, 2022 15:02:53 GMT
One would hope that they go back to an actual Panto next year... Am seeing this tomorrow thanks to the board tipping me off about the free National Lottery tickets - have 4 seats in row B Stalls for free! We got Stalls Row S !!!! Still great seats. I was 2 rows in front for NYE and had an excellent view. Plus I paid full price! |
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Post by willjam39 on Jan 5, 2022 14:15:03 GMT
I must admit Donny is a better actor than i gave him credit for as was totally taken in by the turning off bit. Also didn't help the only clip I'd found was the same day i went.
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Post by fiyero on Jan 5, 2022 14:43:42 GMT
I must admit Donny is a better actor than i gave him credit for as was totally taken in by the turning off bit. Also didn't help the only clip I'd found was the same day i went. Yes, I've seen the show 3 times and would certainly be taken in by that if I hadn't seen it before (or had the hint it may happen from someone asking online if it was genuine already). |
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Post by alece10 on Jan 5, 2022 16:47:31 GMT
One of the friends I went with asked me at the interval if I thought that bit was real or staged. I told her it was staged as happens every night. Then she got really angry with me for telling her.
Well don't bl**dy ask then!
My mum always told me to tell the truth 😀
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Post by fiyero on Jan 5, 2022 17:00:28 GMT
One of the friends I went with asked me at the interval if I thought that bit was real or staged. I told her it was staged as happens every night. Then she got really angry with me for telling her. Well don't bl**dy ask then! My mum always told me to tell the truth 😀 I had that dilemma with a friend. "Well it happened the first time I saw it too" covered it! |
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Post by critchyboy on Jan 5, 2022 19:01:28 GMT
Saw the show this afternoon and enjoyed it! Loved ‘The 12 Days of Christmas’ and Wilmot’s ‘London Underground’ song. Kids really enjoyed Paul Zerdin!
Overall fun afternoon - especially as it was free!!!!
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Post by longinthetooth on Jan 5, 2022 20:58:04 GMT
I was there this afternoon too. Thoroughly enjoyed it, with my £15 Todays Tix Row G seat. I'm not a Donny fan, so he did nothing for me, but he was good, although he was drowned out by the music at times (maybe it was where I was sitting). I loved Julian, and for me this was his funniest panto (if you can call it that). Paul Zerdin really does need to change his scripts though - I was nearly joining in with him, I've heard it all so often over the years.
The amount filming around me was appalling. In Donny's opening number, a woman in the front row videoed the whole song, not helped by the fact that Donny acknowledged her with a little wave. Then, later, a couple of ladies two rows in front of me were taking photos non-stop. After the interval, the usher hovered by the end of their row, but they were oblivious. At one point, Donny encouraged everyone to stand - when we sat down again, one of the women remained standing and filming. The usher indicated to her to stop, so she sat down - but carried on taking pics! The usher then virtually climbed over the people sat next to her to make her stop, which she eventually did. Her neighbour still sneaked in a couple more shots, though. Just a pity it wasn't nipped in the bud right at the start.
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Post by ladidah on Jan 6, 2022 9:07:00 GMT
Is Paul Zerdin given a script or does he just pick his own gags? It's strange he wouldn't want to do new ideas and jokes.
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Post by fiyero on Jan 6, 2022 9:31:59 GMT
Is Paul Zerdin given a script or does he just pick his own gags? It's strange he wouldn't want to do new ideas and jokes. The whole point of Pantoland is to be a best-of. It doesn't help that his bits have been similar in all the pantos so far but we shouldn't have expected anything new this year. |
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Post by zak97 on Jan 7, 2022 22:29:51 GMT
I just way the curtain call on YouTube - do you they sing a version of Finding Wonderland (from the Wonderland tour Kerry Ellis did) but re-branded as Pantoland?
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Post by fiyero on Jan 7, 2022 22:58:54 GMT
I just way the curtain call on YouTube - do you they sing a version of Finding Wonderland (from the Wonderland tour Kerry Ellis did) but re-branded as Pantoland? Donny sings it early on in the show. |
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Post by talkingheads on Jan 9, 2022 14:15:40 GMT
I couldn't help but feel the whole enterprise was a bit sad. They spent a lot of time singing about putting on a great panto but forgot to actually do it.
There's a fine line between familiarity and laziness. Paul Zerdin doing the sane act word for word after five or however many years is unacceptable.
I'm not going to go back until there's a new show and a new cast, it's just dull at this point. Julian was the best thing about the show by far.
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Post by inthenose on Jan 9, 2022 14:27:43 GMT
Paul Zerdin doing the sane act word for word after five or however many years is unacceptable. You are right, but that is panto in a nutshell. I worked on the same (very popular) regional panto for several years and it was identical each time, in essence. The same "ghost gag", the same 12 Days of Christmas, with the same "mistakes", the same dialog/jokes and "audience runabout". The same cast! The only thing which varies really are the songs and the special effect, (magic carpet in Aladdin, beanstalk in Jack eg). If they were going for the comfortable familiarity and repetition of most panto companies across the country, sounds like they nailed it. |
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Post by callum on Jan 11, 2022 18:45:42 GMT
Any predictions for next year?
Every year I think surely Wilmot/Zerdin/Havers can’t come back another year… but sure as hell they do!
In an ideal world, the effects that they could do with Jack and the Beanstalk would be great!
Charlie Stemp as Jack, Julian as (obviously) The Fairy and a big-ish name for Dame Trott?
Or a revival of Cinderella with Paul O’Grady back as the stepmother and Bradley Walsh as Buttons?
Has enough time passed since the Disney musical closed to try Aladdin?
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Post by Figaro on Jan 11, 2022 18:59:30 GMT
It's Jack and the Beanstalk.
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Post by tommy123 on Jan 11, 2022 21:34:38 GMT
Any predictions for next year? Every year I think surely Wilmot/Zerdin/Havers can come back another year… but sure as hell they do! In an ideal world, the effects that they could do with Jack and the Beanstalk would be great! Charlie Stemp as Jack, Julian as (obviously) The Fairy and a big-ish name for Dame Trott? Or a revival of Cinderella with Paul O’Grady back as the stepmother and Bradley Walsh as Buttons? Has enough time passed since the Disney musical closed to try Aladdin? Think Gary won’t be in as assuming he’s doing a year in Wicked from February? |
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Post by ladidah on Jan 12, 2022 9:17:18 GMT
Considering Donny brought in a lot of fans, maybe something similar this year?
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Post by westended on Jan 12, 2022 14:43:14 GMT
As Richmond Theatre are doing "Jack and the Beanstalk" this year my money is on "Sleeping Beauty" as the nearest Crossroads production is in Plymouth this Christmas - or possibly "Aladdin" as the nearest is Crewe and I can see Julian as the Genie of the Ring (!).I suppose it depends on how many sets they have and whether they want to make a new one specifically for the Palladium. They always build new sets for the Palladium - it’s Crossroads’ highest budget venue. The un-announced, but in the planning stages, production for 2020-21 was due to bring in a new set designer Mark Walters. We’ll just have to wait and see what they decide to do |
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Post by Figaro on Jan 12, 2022 17:38:11 GMT
The poster in the theatre showed Jack and the Beanstalk for this year.
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