REVIEW: Dick Whittington and his cat Tweedy at the Everyman
Dick Whittington and his cat Tweedy
Directed by Samual Holmes and Nick Winston
Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham
Friday 2 December 2022
Rating: ★★★★★
After a two-year hiatus we were excited to return to the Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham to see their annual pantomime, an event which guarantees to get us into the festive spirit. (We also have to watch Elf!)
This traditional rags to riches story of Dick and his rather odd cat, with its origins in Gloucestershire, was brought to the Cheltenham stage by a dazzling cast who treated us to some great toe-tapping hits with the moves to match.
Of course, Tweedy the Clown stole the show again and firmly secures his name in the ‘Panties Hall of Fame’, sorry, of course I mean ‘Panto Hall of Fame’. Playing the furry friend of Dick Whittington (Cleve September) whilst accompanying him on his travels to the big smoke of London Town and into the exotic deserts of Morocco and the arms of Alice Fitzwarren (Phoebe Samuel Gray), the pair have a hilarious adventure filled with music, dancing, and the usual pantomime mayhem.
Being a huge fan of the carry-on films when I was younger the abundance of double-entendres and (quite) blue humour was pure delight for me - witnessing the grown-up children squeal with laughter (or squirm in their chairs) rivalling the screams of laughter from the little children. (NB: We were informed though that the matinee performance is toned down suitably).
Highlights of course include the usual messy food scene which had the audience rocking with laughter whilst the ship rocked from side to side.
Another had to be the superb medley of music clips which just kept on coming and coming and coming – pure genius.
The slap-stick antics were helped along by the very sparkly Fairy Bow Bells, the campest fairy of panto land, played by Samuel Holmes, and the Sarah the Cook (Kevin Brewis). The collective comedy was simply superb with random, ad-libbing causing even more comical chemistry.
The big star of the show had to be Tweedy’s pet, Keef the iron, his awesome presence just got bigger and bigger and bigger, something poor ‘Little Tweedy’ couldn’t rival, and nor could the evil ‘Queen Rat’! (Laura Denning).
If you haven’t booked your tickets yet then do as it will put some genuine warmth into your body on these cold, winter nights - and let’s face it, the tickets will probably be the same price as a night in your heated home whilst watching the gloomy news!
Dick Whittington and his Cat Tweedy runs at the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham, until Sunday 8 January 2023.
Explore Gloucestershire
5 December 2022
Reviewer: KJezzer
For further information.
OTHER NEWS
