Cinderella – Yvonne Arnaud, Guilford

Writer:Paul Hendy

Director/Choreographer: Gerry Tebbutt

Reviewer: Bill Avenell

Prince Charming and the Slipper Having been to a number of Pantos with my children over recent years I have always felt that the difficulty for directors is combining all those traditional elements that are part of British folk lore with the desire to publicise the headlining star or the soap opera from which they come. The two often sit very uncomfortably.

Guildford seem to have done the job pretty well this year however, perhaps partly because Gethin Jones is not the traditional TV series star and ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ (which was the butt of much of the humour )is not really a soap opera, and this allows Gerry Tebbutt’s direction to centre on more of the traditional elements. But this is not a production stuck in those traditions and Paul Hendy’s adaptation embraced new with old giving us a clever interpretation of an ’apprentice’ fairy godmother and a Cinderella who is a far more robust character than is often the case. The only real problem, and it was a problem for an audience that was up for a good night out, was that there is no one to boo. Where oh where is the evil step mother figure, rotten to the core, who we could hiss at all night?

Gone are the days of the lavish sets and the fabulous costumes but Helga Wood’s set served well and the see-through curtain came into its own in the transformations while the children loved the ponies. On the costume front I was a bit disappointed with the lack of finery but the Ugly Sisters complete with beehives and conical bosoms looked suitably outlandish. I thought John Harris’ lighting really complimented the production but I felt that Steve Hill’s music could have been used to greater theatrical effect and if you are looking for big musical numbers then this is not the production for you.

Sometimes in Pantomime the production has dead periods when the stars are off the stage but in this case the performances were of a virtually universally high standard. From the lively chorus scenes (watch for the cupids) to Buttons handling of the children on stage, it was an accomplished performance. Gethin Jones as Charming came across as really charming and a feisty Cinders was played and sung well by Rebecca Brewer.

Lloyd Hollett was a hard working Buttons who had us all in the palm of his hand right from the off and everyone around me was desperately hoping that the toping fairy, played by Gay Soper, would earn her wings by the end. For me, however, the star was undoubtedly Hilary O’Neil whose performance as Dandini Cinderella and Ugly Sisters ,with a mixture of impressions and jokes delivered with classic timing, was worth the entrance money on its own. The only down side was the lack of a villain. The Ugly Sisters (Peter Gordon and Gerry Tebbutt) tried their best but it is hard to combine the slapstick element with the villainous character and consequently it was all a bit laboured in the evil department.

I am not sure what the children thought of it (although there was much waving of glowing wands), but the buzz in the auditorium, the repartis (well handled by the players) and the lively atmosphere in the foyer all suggested that the adults had a good evening. Certainly my (elderly) companion and I travelled home with a rosy glow (even if we still had some venom to spare).