Reviewed by Holly Proctor
Tickets were gifted in return for an honest review.
Tickets were gifted in return for an honest review.
Now I must preface this review by saying that this is not a family friendly panto, please do not take children to see this show.
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| Yshee Black and Ginger Johnson. |
TuckShop have brought their 4th drag panto to the West End just in time for the festive season, following on from their incredible success of previous shows and this did not disappoint. If you love drag, british humour and very nudge nudge wink wink humour, you need to come and see this show. From the moment the stage lights came on, the audience was drawn in with the cast and the jokes. With the principal cast including Cheryl Hole, Kitty Scott Claus, Kate Butch and Ginger Johnson, you are very much in the hands of drag and comedy geniuses.
Whilst this is a Peter Pan panto, this might not be the version of the story you remember, and I say lightly, in this show Peter is a sexual deviant and wants to get off with almost every character and even the odd audience member… with consent of course! From the standard panto tradition of a character asking the audience to respond to a character on stage, in this show the audience is asked to tell Smee to fuck off, but all in good fun as the actors ham it up to the nth degree and the audience lap it up.
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| Kate Butch, Kitty Scott-Claus & Cheryl Hole. |
There’s no way I can write this review without giving praise to the dancers in this show, in a single word, they were sensational! Such incredible talent and choreography, so much so that they can even turn it out whilst in a mermaid tail.
The music choices in this show really lends itself to the overall storytelling and jokes of the show from the Darling children singing “Our House” by Madness to “Joyride” by Kesha sung by Wendy played by Kitty Scott Claus.
Whilst this is an adult panto, you still get the silly jokes you expect in a panto so even those who are new to panto can enjoy the tradition of panto too. Alongside this, the cast being true comedic professionals and being able to think on their feet if this doesn't go to plan, whether that is unexpected audience involvement or Hook forgetting to put on her hook.
The show was an absolute joy to watch, you could feel the excitement in the audience through the entirety of the show. You could tell the cast were going to give you a good show and make you leave with your cheeks hurting from laughing so much.
This show proves that you don’t need a big budget to put on a good show, just a great cast which this show had in abundance. I must give a little shout out to a moment before the bows where Cheryl, Kate Butch, Kitty Scott Klaus and Yshee Black sang a rendition of the ‘12 days of Christmas’, that performance has to be the most hilarious and enjoyable version I’ve ever seen and Kate Butch on the off chance you ever read this, firstly I’m a huge fan and secondly bless you for trying to get through that song, it did not look easy.
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| Ophelia Love & Richard Energy. |
TuckShop are true genius of comedy and their shows are not to be missed, if you have a chance this christmas and you are of age, go and see this show, you will not regret it, they have found a life long patron in me and I know they will continue to create incredible pieces of theatre.
Peter Pan plays at The Phoenix Theatre in London on Monday 16th, Monday 23rd, Tuesday 24th December 2024 and Monday 6th January 2025. Tickets are available from https://www.atgtickets.com/shows/peter-pan/phoenix-theatre/calendar/2024-12-16
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