Cinderella - Castle Theatre Wellingborough

Reviewed by Kathryn - Standing In The Wings

Disclaimer; tickets were gifted in return for an honest review

Cinderella. Possibly the oldest pantomime story of rags to riches, true love winning through and magic in abundance. Sadly, this year’s production from The Castle didn’t quite hit the magical pinnacle. 

Don’t get me wrong, anyone under the age of 12 appeared to love the dancing and glittery scenery but, for me, there was something missing. The cast, who were all very talented and can sing brilliantly and dance excellently, did well with a badly written script (with lots of adult humour) which which didn’t give them chance to show off their acting skills. Whilst you could argue that panto isn’t about high end acting…it’s all about the storytelling and one of the original ways of sharing these classic fairytales on stage, and this script didn’t give much opportunity for that particular skillset. 

The set (from UK Productions) did the job nicely with a traditional front cloth, scenery cloths and trucks for the village and castle ballroom. Lighting was neatly designed by Ollie Titterington with some nice effects for the bigger dance numbers. Sound Design by George Mewitt was a little under rehearsed with some lines missed on entrances and low levels when there was audience interaction. 

Direction and choreography were well drilled but lacked imagination - all the dancers were, again, talented and performed the dance moves with energy and enthusiasm but the moves were similar throughout the numbers.

The highlight of the evening should be the transformation of kitchen maid Cinders into Princess Crystal. Unfortunately, the magic just didn’t happen - the transformation happened quickly and without much build up that it just happened and suddenly we were at the end of Act 1. 

Overall, a nice night out and one that little ones are sure to enjoy but not one of my top pantos. 

Cinderella plays at Castle Theatre, Wellingborough until Sunday 31st December 2023. Tickets are available from https://www.parkwoodtheatres.co.uk/castle-theatre/whats-on/cinderella