A sure-fire Hit – It’s a Bullseye!
With a strong immersed cast of 40, Handsworth and Hallam Theatre Company hit the stage at the newly refurbished Montgomery Theatre in Sheffield and score a bullseye with their pantomime Robin Hood. The hilarious script is written by Tom Whalley and the cast make sure every arrow, although anything but straight and with plenty of quiver, hit their target audience! With traditional backdrops we are transported from village to woods and even ‘fungeons’. The story follows the well-known tale of Robin Hood and his love for Maid Marion pitted against the evil Sheriff of Nottingham and his scheming for power and wealth. Add in in true pantomime tradition the very Merry Men, the obligatory Dame Nanny Fanny Flapjack and her hapless son Silly Willy (who is anything but ‘dim’), the Sherwood Sprite (fairy role), villagers and a few bears and you have all that is needed to make a traditional British evening of entertainment and celebration of British panto!
The six strong band add the musical magic under the Direction of the accomplished Steve Trotter and appeared to laugh as much as the audience did! Directed by Matthew Walker with Jane Jefferson Blythe as his assistant the show is none stop and never gives the audience a moment to breathe let alone work out some of the ‘180’ plus constant gags. The detail in the visual hilarity is exceptional from well-placed golden Arrow trophies to Willies weapon, the pantomime has a very tongue in cheek delivery that has double entendres in the bucket load!
The ensemble were attentive and well-rehearsed with choreography by Hayley Wilbourne and Beth Cooke. It was a delight to see the vast array of ages on stage and embodies all that is community theatre. But, with very few children in the audience; it was a school night; the show aimed, shot and scored with an almost entirely adult audience! Lead by the formidably talented Matthew Walker as Dame Nanny Fanny Flapjack, with more costumes changes than I have ever seen in any pantomime, amateur or professional. Whilst dominant in role he did not upstage the rest of the Cast with some exceptional performances by the other Principal cast members. Stuart Ogden and Sam Widdowson are Little John and Alan-a-Dale and are the epitome of ‘Merry Men’ and have fine singing voices too. Steve Mather’s Friar Tuck finds an unlikely closeted kindred spirit and adds to the mayhem. The Sherwood Sprite (Louise Loftus) gives a spirited performance and adds the narrative role to the production. David Jefferson is the jack of all trades and turns up as King John, The Hunchback and even Michael Bear-ble! Richard Granger’s Robin Hood is played well with masculinity and he has a great arsenal of weapons to keep this role fore and centre on stage. Sara Ross is anything but a wishee washee (sorry wrong panto!) character and her Maid Marion has great comedic timing. The Sherriff of Nottingham (Andrew Stansall) had the audience hissing and booing at every entrance and exit.
Joseph Walker in the role of Silly Willy has to be my favourite performance. What a talent, from physicality to his vocal – both in delivery and singing where exceptional. The sketch between himself and Granger as Robin with the song titles was stunning, and his mimed impersonations of the singing artists was enthralling, I could watch that on repeat! Gold!
But, this production of Robin Hood is steered by Matthew Walker’s Dame. He has a wonderfully sarcasastic relationship with the audience and constantly interacts with them, breaking the 4 th wall at every possible moment… including the constant corpsing and adlibs from the whole cast… organised mayhem rules but it is controlled… I think? Well most of the time! From the poor audience member who is made to dance at every (many) entrances from Walker, to the water pistols aimed at the audience, the ‘It’s behind you’ in the woods and the children (which on the night I watched nearly knocked Walker off kilter, thanks to an energetic young lady) on stage, Walker hits the mark. His many costumes (Molly Limpets Theatrical Emporium) are as outlandish as his character and you can not fail to take notice of his every detail in performance. The only tradition missing was the messy baking scene… but the whole cast made up for that in abundance.
Robin Hood -The most risqué panto I have seen this season is at The Montgomery Theatre, Sheffield until Sunday 2nd February and it is a sure fire hit! I never stopped laughing, my smile made my cheeks hurt! Pacy, energetic hilarity that hits the Bullseye straight in the centre! Don’t miss this one – a great night out for the whole family but with more than enough to make the Adult’s guffaw!
Reviewed: Tracey Bell
Reviewed: 30th January 2025
North West End UK Rating:
Rating: 4 out of 5.
