January 2005
Mother Goose
It takes a little while for this goose to take off, but the enthusiasm of the young cast is so infectious that the audience goes home smiling. While the first act is a shade sluggish compared with some of their past productions, the Stephen Duckham panto certainly comes to life after the interval, with a ballet sword - fighting scene one of the highlights. Danni Jayes is an excellent Jack - she even plays the sax during one number - and she has a fine partner in Laura Gretton (Jill), with David Harris a splendid dame, Mother Goose. There is a mischievously entertaining contribution too, from Alex Gibbs as Billy Goose who pulls in audience participation by insisting on calls of "wake up, Billy" whenever he starts to doze off. Costumes are good and the absence of scenery is compensated by the use of photographs beamed onto the back of the stage. But a word of caution - the generous gesture of tossing sweets into the auditorium in faded light could be hazardous. Directed by Alan Hackett with Emma Wright's choreography and Stuart Jones' musical direction, Mother Goose runs to tomorrow.
Paul Marston
The Birmingham Evening Mail
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