Cinderella Rock 'n' Roll Panto

The yearly rock ’n’ roll panto at the Everyman has become an institution of Liverpool in the same way as the Superlambbanana and purple wheelie bins are icons of the city. This year’s panto is Cinderella, but with a clever twist. Written by Luke Barnes and directed by James Baker, the show is a refreshing interpretation of the traditional fairytale. This Cinderella isn’t a damsel in distress, she’s her own comic book hero delivering a message of self-love and how being true to yourself is the most important thing.

In the Everyman’s Cinderella, the traditional Fairy Godmother has been replaced with the Dame Fairy Godmother (Ben Welch) who is more akin to Cupid than the traditional role. Match-making and creating happily ever afters are her mission, but she’s soon to retire to Benidorm. To make sure that her match-making is in safe hands, Dame Fairy Godmother wants to complete one more quest to check that her apprentice Graham (Adam Keast) is ready to take the reigns. Their targets for love are Ellanora (Grace Venus) and comic book geek Prince Charming (Thomas Fabian Parrish). Will the Dame Fairy Godmother and Our Graham (a nod to Blind Date) be able to match the couple or will Ellanora’s father Mr Ooglay (Zoe West), siblings Dench (Folarin Akinmade) and Judi (Rebecca Levy) or even Prince Charming’s mother the Queen of Liverpool (Aminita Francis) foil their romantic plans?

This show is simply a fantastic production, full of outstanding performances. Opening with the Dame Fairy Godmother rising onto the stage with a powerful vocal delivery, the show goes from strength to strength. This production is the epitome of fun. The interactions between Welch and Keast with the audience had everyone in fits of laughter (poor unsuspecting Brian!), whilst the heart-warming sensitive moments aren’t overshadowed by the comedic elements.

Notoriously, pantos do not always go to plan (oh yes they do!), and this one was no exception.

Zoe West was the first to experience the panto perils when a birthday hat worn by Mr Ooglay became trapped on the fake beard. As the audience started laughing, West remained totally in character and delivered their lines perfectly whilst also ad-libbing to to the audience to stop laughing. A panto masterclass which was swiftly followed by ad libs from Keast, Venus and Welch throughout the show to cover up minor mistakes. Undoubtedly these moments are what makes pantos, and the cast weren’t afraid to embrace them.

Being called a rock ’n’ roll panto, you’d be forgiven for thinking all the music is of that genre, but there is something for every music taste. Aminita Francis provided a goosebump inducing performance of Whitney Houston’s Queen of the Night, whilst a tempo adjusted version of Kylie’s Padam Padam sang by Venus and Parrish was beautiful in it’s simplicity.

The set and costumes by Isla Shaw and lighting by Ryan Joseph Stafford complemented the acting skill on stage. Ellanora’s costume featured a range of Scouse sayings such as ’that’s boss’ and an all important Home AND Bargain logo, which as everyone knows is the correct name of the shop! One of our favourite moments was a Vogue style ball which really highlighted the range of costumes. Coupled with an on stage dress reveal, the costuming was spectacular.

The actual sets allowed for easy transitions but also gave the audience the opportunity to see the musical talents of the cast. Each member played an instrument as part of the band and was clearly visible on the second level of the staging. This additional height to the stage also meant you could never be 100% sure where the cast would emerge from. This was particularly important for the panto classic watergun scene!

This is a small cast in which every person shines, however, Grace Venus as Ellanora deserves a special mention. Not only is she outstanding in the lead role, but this production is her professional debut. She is actually yet to graduate from LIPA (she’s currently in her 3rd year), but she handled the unpredictable nature of panto perfectly whilst also delivering a stellar performance.

Like every good panto, this is a show for all ages. If you only see one panto this festive season you won’t go wrong with this one. It’s fast paced, laugh out loud funny, with fantastic performances from the entire cast. You’ll walk away full of joy and self-belief, and maybe a few streaks of mascara down your face!

Cinderella is on at the Liverpool Everyman until 20 January 2024. Tickets are available on the Everyman website and range from £16 to £46 per person.

Our tickets to this production were kindly gifted by The Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse in exchange for an honest review.

Originally posted: November 22, 2023