Sleeping Beauty – M&S Bank Arena

Live theatre is back after over. A year of wanting and hoping it was amazing to be in an auditorium waiting for the curtain to rise. Sleeping Beauty at the M&S Bank auditorium until the 6th of June. The show had Gareth Gates (Les Miserable and Pop Idol), Bippo who is the comedy relief in the show, and Emma Grace Arends as Beauty amongst a small chorus. The show is approx. 2 hours long with one interval.

Watching the show I felt it was rather flat, it’s opening weekend energy is meant to be high but I just felt underwhelmed. The music over shadowed the microphones so some parts of the vocals were lost. Moving on some lines were muddled up and Gareth Gates entered too early for his scene. Bippo however, rescued it well. It came to a point where it was a live rehearsal not an opening weekend of a pantomime after lockdowns. As an audience member I felt confused because we obviously can’t shout and scream due to the current climate and we were told by the characters not to. Yet in some parts we were told to be louder. We all know Pantomime has silly humour but some of the material in the show I felt was a little too risky.

Now reading this it’s sounding like I hated it but there were some beautiful visual effects and Bippo’s tricks were mesmerising. The show really included the audience which was nice to see and witness. Beauty’s singing was insane she was brilliant and if you’re a casting director book her. The important thing here is that the younger audience loved it and the families around me laughed and loved the show. Maybe the mistakes was just down to nerves as it is opening weekend and I would say it is worth watching with your children.

Tickets are available via the website until 5^th June 2021 https://www.mandsbankarena.com/whats-on/sleeping-beauty/

Reviewer: Luke Stephenson

Reviewed: 30^th May 2021

North West End UK Rating: ★★★

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