Stage: Somewhere ogre the rainbow

Puss in Boots
by Tim McArthur, Lucy Penrose
director Tim McArthur
with Nyah Randon, Lucy Penrose, Andrew Lambe, Adam Rhys-Davies, Connor McGrane, Oli Ross
produced by Above the Stag
Wonderville, London • 4-31.Dec.23 ★★★★

By their very nature, British pantomimes are chaotic and silly, and Above the Stag has tilted even more intently in that direction this year. Instead of their usual queer theatrical pantos, this high-spirited show has a more cabaret-style approach, like a group of talented friends getting together to put on a show in the town hall, making it up as they go. Bursting with Broadway energy, it has an amusingly ramshackle, rambling plot and layers upon layers of riotous innuendo.

In a nutshell, the story centres around Master Baker (Penrose), who teams up with Puss (Randon) after the ogre Kevin (Rhys-Davies), in a rage because Puss killed his brother, turns the Prince (McGrane) into a chicken. They get help from fellow baker Dame Fanny (Lambe) to raid Kevin's lair and reverse the curse. Of course, nothing goes as planned, everyone is misunderstood, and there's a wedding on the cards.

With freewheeling glee, the action is continually interrupted by big musical numbers and a range of random twists and turns that begin to feel a bit torturous. Dialog is peppered with pointed political jokes and witty song references, and both the lyrics and choreography delight in smutty double entendre while playing hilariously with theatrical traditions. Through it all, the engaging, up-for-it performers have a lot of fun with their characterisations, enthusiastically embracing costume changes, disguises and multiple roles that make it feel like there are 10 people in the cast.

Quite a bit of this is laugh-out-loud funny, including the way the songs are bent into the story, from musical theatre classics like Tomorrow and A Wonderful Day Like Today to baking-themed pop tunes including Whip It Real Good and Girls Just Wanna Make Buns. Each of the performers is terrific, while the preternaturally talented Penrose steals the show with her astonishing musical range and skilful comedy timing as she plays Master Baker while puppeteering the chicken-prince. She even gets a fabulous break-out number all her own.

The show is so chirpy that we don't much mind the dopey gags that don't quite land, and the energy is so high that we go along with a couple of songs that seem endless in their round-and-round repetition. It's all so relentlessly, disarmingly ridiculous that we rather enjoy the convoluted gyrations of the nonsensical narrative. By the end, we're singing and dancing with the cast, delighted that it seems like it might never end.

For information, ABOVE THE STAG >

photos by Gaz@PBGStudios • 10.Dec.23

Stage: Spilling the beans

Tossed
The RVT Panto
by Tim Benzie, Paul Joseph
director Tim McArthur
musical director Vicki Calver 
with Ed Cooke, Leigh Pollard, Grace Kelly Miller, Ada Campe, Ben Hutt
Royal Vauxhall Tavern, London • 29.Nov.23-5.Jan.24 ★★★★

Taking their usual hilarious approach to the Christmas pantomime, Royal Vauxhall Tavern follows Rubbed, Slipped, Goosed, Pricked and Cracked with Tossed, a delightfully deranged sequel to Jack and the Beanstalk. While the structure is very familiar, the cast has been completely refreshed with a wonderfully up-for-it ensemble, and the jokes are right up to date with the messy reality of British politics. It's a perfect antidote to the usual holiday sweetness, although there's some of that too.

Narrated by the now-talking cow Daisy (Miller), the plot is fairly irrelevant, set after Jack (Cooke) has risen to social media fame as a giant killer, but he's wondering what he should do next. Meanwhile, his overambitious mother Spriggins (Hutt) is angling for him to marry into even more money, and the most likely candidate is Gina T (Pollard), a human-sized giant who is on a mission to avenge her fallen relative. And then there's Sorcererer (Campe), an endlessly mischievous magician who is happy to meddle.

Livening all of this up is a steady barrage of innuendo, rude jokes and knowingly hilarious references to things like reality TV, Britain's disastrous Tory government (including the ghost of Liz Truss) and the scandal-plagued royal family. Among the flurry of sharply performed songs that have been adapted to tell this story, there are new hits like Kylie's Padam Padam and Sam Ryder's Space Man, iconic tunes like Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It), Love Shack and (I've Had) The Time of My Life, belters like Don't Stop Believin' and Mamma Mia, and the Barry Manilow/Take That classic Could It Be Magic (plus a bit of on-stage magic).

As always, the audience participation elements feel rather repetitive, including a witty and enjoyably frantic variation on 12 Days of Christmas and a climactic singalong. And each character's call-and-response gag kind of gets lost in the shuffle, as it should. But there are also riotously amusing running gags, such as Dame Spriggins pointlessly begging the audience to please not boo her. And the hilarious choreography and snappy wordplay livens up the bonkers plot, as does the chaotic slapstick and a late connection to the enduring queer scene in Vauxhall.

For information, ROYAL VAUXHALL TAVERN >

photos by Chris Jepson • 1.Dec.23 

Stage: I'll drink to that

Deeper and Deeper
written and directed by Tim McArthur
with Scott Afton, Stewart Briggs, Dickon Farmar, Robert Hook, Hari Kanabar
produced by Above the Stag
lighting Vittorio Verta
costumes Michelle Taylor Knight
Union Theatre, Southwark • 13-17.Sep.23

Kanabar and Hook

There are some provocative ideas gurgling within this drama, which explores the lives of five men whose lives are intertwined over nearly two decades. Much of the interaction features barbed humour, but it's not quite appropriate to call this a comedy, as the jokes reveal limited perspectives and awkward attitudes. The dialog may elicit laughter here and there, but much of this is because it's so easy to see how these guys are struggling to connect on a deeper level.

It opens with a first meeting in a Camden flat in 1997, as Andrew (Farmar) is looking to rent a room with a group of younger guys. He's welcomed by Simon (Afton), an eager and very naive kid only recently arrived in London from Cornwall. Then the sexy Joe (Hook) turns up, flirting shamelessly and then some. The fourth tenant is the cheerful owner Paul (Briggs). And over the years, these four get very drunk together and expose their thoughts and feelings about a range of issues relating to gay life in Britain. A new boyfriend arrives with French twink Louis (Kanabar), relationships come and go, and revelations continually shake their trust in each other.

Afton and Farmar

On a nicely simplified set with black furniture, white props and a scene-setting video wall, the play's first half progresses in sequence, jumping ahead through five years. Then after the interval the narrative fractures, flashing back to reveal connections made earlier than expected, secret ongoing relationships, a surprising sudden death and various years-later encounters. Through all of this, there's a lot of banter about  the usual gay topics like sex, dating and clubbing. And there's continual spicy interaction, although it's more barbed than playful. Indeed, their insults have a brittle, queeny sting to them, usually fuelled by alcohol.

Performances are strong on the whole. Aside from one miscast role, the actors find clever ways to mix sexual posturing with bristly sarcasm while continually revealing underlying emotions. Hook and Kanabar have the most engaging presence on-stage, creating a strikingly realistic bond together. Their roles are more naturalistic than the others, so they're easier to identify with. Hook is remarkably good at holding audience sympathy even as Joe is vilified for his promiscuity and deception. All of them nicely convey the way these men change over the decades.

Briggs with Hook & Kanabar

Alongside pop cultural references and Madonna music from 1995 to 2013, the play is packed with witty observations, sassy opinions, screaming rows and darkly emotional introspection. And while it feels rather fragmented, it adds up to an involving depiction of a relationship over time within the gay subculture, including the way it ripples out to encompass other people. As these five men fall in and out of love and then find lingering embers of affection, a profound honesty emerges that's ultimately moving.

For details, ABOVE THE STAG >

photos by PGBStudios • 13.Sep.23

Stage: Flying the flag

Eurovision (Your Decision)
written and directed by Tim McArthur
with Lucy Penrose, Tim McArthur, Leigh Pollard, Steven Serlin
also Ben Watson, Leanne Jones, Maisie Sellwood, David McMullan
Wonderville, London • 29.Apr-13.May.23

Above the Stag's Eurovision (Your Decision) returns for a third triumphant year, which after the theatre's sudden closure last summer has relocated to Wonderville in the West End, as well as travelling to Brighton and this year's Eurovision host city Liverpool. It feels more confident this year, avoiding the more broadly comical numbers for more polished performances that are still blissfully ridiculous. These are sharply observed pastiche recreations of memorable songs over past decades, designed to keep the audience laughing, cheering and singing along with the up-for-it cast.

Our fabulous hosts Katie and Demetrius (Lucy Penrose and Tim McArthur) are back to lead us through a series of 15 songs that are in the running for the top prize. More than half of the numbers are new this year, including appearances from Irish legend Johnny Logan (1987 winner Hold Me Now) and Celine Dion (Switzerland's 1988 winner Ne Partez Sans Moi). We also now get to enjoy Serbia's bonkers 2022 entry In Corpore Sano, which is performed in its original Latin. 

Thankfully, the wacky Ukrainian entry Dancing Lasha Tumbai (2007) and Iceland's superb Think About Things (from the cancelled 2021 competition) are still in the running order, as are UK favourites Making Your Mind Up (1981's winner) and Flying the Flag (2007), plus an appearance from a rather hairy Sonia with the power ballad Better the Devil You Know (1993). 

Once again, a superstar guest performer arrives after the interval to belt out a couple of big numbers (Hairspray star Lizzie Bea brought the house down on press night) before the riotously silly international jury dials in with their selections, which are combined with an audience vote to declare a winner. The show is superbly written and choreographed, packed with rude innuendo, camp comedy and knowing nods to Eurovision's singular blend of outrageous musicality. 

This show is hugely physical, featuring a riot of corny wigs and costumes as the four cast members incarnate dozens of characters each in elaborately staged musical numbers. Penrose, McArthur, Leigh Pollard and Steven Serlin are gifted musicians who are unafraid to make idiots of themselves on-stage (other performers will appear throughout the run). Each has spotless comical timing that makes everything feel fresh, even as they are also in on the joke. But it's the power of the music, presented with such a skilful blend of respect and satire, that gets us on our feet.

Review of the May 2022 production: EUROVISION (YOUR DECISION?) >

Also at Floral Pavilion, Liverpool 5-6.May.23, and at Ironworks, Brighton 10-11.May.23. For information, visit ABOVE THE STAG > 

Photos by PBG Studios • 30.Apr.23

Stage: Sharp as a tack

Cracked: Snow White ... With Extra Bite
by Tim Benzie and Paul Joseph
dir Tim McArthur
musical director Aaron Clingham
with Grant Cartwright, Charlie Wood, Stewart Briggs, Lucy Penrose, Josh Sing Sian
Royal Vauxhall Tavern, London • 24.Nov.22-6.Jan.23

For their seasonal panto, the team at the Royal Vauxhall Tavern have created yet another wonderfully naughty take on the children's theatre format, adapting the Snow White fairy tale into a witty adventure into modern obsessions with social media. Everything about this show feels sharp as a tack, from the snappy script to the engagingly silly performances.

In this version of the story, Snow White (Cartwright) is a self-absorbed princess who hasn't a clue what's going on around her. Even more preening, the Wicked Queen (Stewart Briggs) relies on affirmation from her Magic Mirror (Wood). But the truth-telling mirror has been lying to her, which results in a series of cracks until it only has one lie left. Enter dwarf Sleepy (Penrose), the tale's narrator, who is trying to make a new mirror for the Queen before she realises that she's not actually the fairest in the land. And there's also a huntsman (Sian) who works for the Queen but is secretly in love with Snow White.

Staged with colourful costumes on the RVT's tiny stage, the plot is deliberately chaotic, resulting in various nutty encounters that are merely excuses for riotously warped renditions of pop songs from Abba to Harry Styles, by way of several classic musical theatre numbers. Kate Bush even comes to the rescue at one point, just one of many smart cultural references. And amusingly lacerating political gags are peppered throughout the script, eliciting pointed cheers from the audience.

Some of the tropes of the panto tradition feel a bit over-extended, such as the big number that's sung in the round (which seems unnecessary after the more fleet-footed rendition of Godspell's similarly complex All for the Best) or the big audience-competition song. But it's performed with so much charm that we don't mind at all. This is a very clever show that addresses the audience like children while taking a gleefully adult approach to innuendo and more overt smuttiness. And what it has to say about the impact of social media makes us think in between the laughter.

For information, visit ROYAL VAUXHALL TAVERN >

photos by Chris Jepson • 13.Dec.22

Cabaret: Making your mind up

Eurovision (Your Decision?)
writer-director Tim McArthur
with Lucy Penrose, Tim McArthur,
Sarah Moore, Christian Andrews
Above the Stag, Vauxhall • 6-14.May.22

Celebrating its #secondcoming after last year's hit run, this superbly well-assembled cabaret show counts down to the real Eurovision Song Contest by taking audience members on a gleefully irreverent trip through the competition's long history. And while it sometimes gets a bit silly, the show manages to strike just the right balance between snarky satire and heartfelt homage. It also features some seriously gifted performers in a terrific venue, complete with table service throughout the show.

As hosts Katie and Demetrius (Lucy Penrose and Tim McArthur) surge onto the stage with their shimmery outfits and ludicrous accents, we immediately know right where we are: a grand European arena filled with screaming fans, ready to watch a parade of colourful musical numbers, hopefully of the bonkers variety. What follows are 14 Eurovision hits, staged with elaborate choreography and performed with a riotous succession of wigs and costumes by four up-for-it performers: Penrose, McArthur, Sarah Moore and Christian Andrews.

Sound of Silence

The musical highlight is Penrose's soaring rendition of Sound of Silence (Australia 2016 - right), while the most enjoyably nutty number is the spacetacular Dancing Lasha Tumbai (Ukraine 2007 - below), only marginally more camp than the original version. A strong second place in this category would be the amusingly quirky staging of Think About Things, Iceland's catchy entry to the cancelled 2020 competition. The UK is represented by four numbers, including the blissfully choreographed ditty Flying the Flag (2007), Ooh Aah ... Just a Little Bit (1996), Making Your Mind Up (1981's winner) and a pastiche rendition of Cliff Richards' Congratulations (which only missed the top spot by one point in 1968).

Sweden's 2015 winner Heroes

All four of the performers display impressive vocal and dance skills along the way, always with a sly wink to the audience. They are also more than willing to lose all of their dignity along the way. During the interval, we get to vote for our winner, followed by a special performance from a guest singer who delivers the standards All of Me and I've Got You Under My Skin with effortless charm. Finally, there's the voting tally, which is as ridiculous as we hope it will be, followed by a frantically quick change to get back into the right wigs for the big reprise finale. It's impossible not to have a great time at an evening like this, and it's hard to imagine that it's not on its way to becoming a beloved annual event on its own.

Dancing Lasha Tumbai

For information, visit ABOVE THE STAG >

6.May.22

Stage: Double-pricked for Christmas

Pricked: Sleeping Beauty Got Woke
by Tim Benzie, Paul Joseph
dir Tim McArthur
music Aaron Clingham
with Grant Cartwright, Joseph Pollard, Lucy Penrose, Chantelle St Clair, Charlie Wood
Royal Vauxhall Tavern • 25.Nov.21-6.Jan.22

Shut down by the pandemic lockdown just a few days into its run in 2020, the riotously silly Pricked returns to the Royal Vauxall Tavern stage with a few timely story tweaks, swapped-out musical numbers and two new cast members. While LAST YEAR'S PRODUCTION felt fresh and absurdly funny, this year's show has a ramshackle charm that holds the attention based more on the sheer energy of the cast than anything else. And for me it had a whiff of deja vu that made it feel even more topical.

The tale of Sleeping Beauty gives the story its structure, although director Tim McArthur crafts it into a wonderfully deranged pub show that's definitely not for kids. Each scene is a performance, almost like an audition, as the characters introduce themselves and chat to the audience before performing a song or two, drawing on a range of musical theatre numbers and pop tunes. Updates for this year include bracingly current references to politicians and popular culture, plus an inspired, deliberately corny Abba reunion sequence.

It's still the story of Princess Aurora (Cartwright), who has been cursed by Maleffluent (Polland) to fall into a deep sleep on her 18th birthday. But Fairy Merryweather (Penrose) and a passing Prince (St Clair) intervene, plotting to rescue Aurora from Maleffluent and her conflicted sidekick Raven (Wood). None of these characters seem to have a clue what's going on around them, played amusingly by a gender-scrambled cast that continually questions the things written for them to do in the script. This includes getting impatient with the dream sequences and flashbacks that distract them along the way to the glorious holiday-themed wedding finale.

With boundless energy and considerable vocal skill, each performer dives into the wackiness, dropping in barbed asides and a continual stream of throwaway gags alongside the expected smut and innuendo. This means that quite a bit of dialog gets muffled in the mayhem, but the atmosphere is so bawdy and enjoyable that it never matters. And with lighter pandemic restrictions this year, the audience can more properly get involved with call-and-response moments, including lots of cheering, booing and singing along with the cast.

photos by Chris Jepson • 26.Nov.21

Stage: Music and comedy all summer long

Cabaret Lounge
Summer 2021 • Above the Stag, Vauxhall
For full listings, visit: CABARET LOUNGE

At the launch of the summer season at Above the Stag Theatre's Cabaret Lounge, attendees were treated to a delicious array of performances, a sampling of events to come over the next few months. The lounge is a glittering space (literally, glitter covers almost every surface, including the grand piano) that has a terrific sense of intimacy as the audience sits at tables with continuous service from a friendly bar staff, and the performers are close enough to almost touch, pandemic restrictions notwithstanding.

Performances at the launch represented a sampling of what's on offer, so check out the website for full details. They're listed here in the order they'll be taking over the stage...

With her powerful voice, Nicole Faraday (My Life in Song, 25th June) is adept at belting out big songs. And there's a honeyed quality that adds subtle texture at every step, especially when she delivers a number from her idol Karen Carpenter. Simply gorgeous. The launch event was hosted by the sparky, mischievous Ada Campe (Jollies, 26th June), whose fabulously funny personality is infectious. She's riotously enthusiastic, and skilfully dives into her nutty songs with an engaging cheekiness. And then there's Helen Anker (The Essence of Audrey, 27th June and 4th July), who brings Audrey Hepburn vividly to life. Her casually open-hearted storytelling is funny and riveting, as she shares anecdotes and trivia. Stories about making Roman Holiday are hilarious, and her stripped-back rendition of Moon River from Breakfast at Tiffany's is powerfully moving.

The lounge is programmed by Tim McArthur, a cabaret star in his own right, and he has a few nights of his own, taking to the stage in conversation with the likes of journalist Matt Cain (27th June) and iconic comic Helen Lederer (4th July). He's also hosting Secret Star (8th July), a wonderfully queer spin on The Masked Singer featuring West End stars in silly disguises. The engaging couple Chris Hamilton & Shimi Goodman (What a Time to Be Alive, 3rd July) are a pianist and actor-singer who delight in deconstructing pop songs into a range of random genres. And it helps that both are hugely talented, having a lot of optimistic, jaunty fun as they talk about their life together and their love of music. Sitting at a piano, Stefan Bednarczyk performs the songs of Noel Coward (10th July) with an easy authenticity, playfully getting into character to tell musical stories about unexpected romance.

Also at the piano, Ian Elmsie sings numbers from his musical Old Boyfriends (15th July), exploring deeper ideas about love. They're funny and romantic, and very involving. For a sassy change of pace Flat and the Curves (18th July) is a massively entertaining group of women who delight in performing hysterically rude songs. Their operatic ditty about porn is a deadpan delight. And their Abba-style song about how a visit to Ikea can devastate a relationship is priceless. With a mixture of performance art and old Hollywood glamour, Keith Ramsay (Eve: All About Her, 23rd July) offers fascinating, darkly meaningful music and storytelling. Haunted by the ghost of Judy Garland, he's utterly mesmerising. And finally, Rhys'Pieces (Queefy, 4th August) offers a stunningly original take on lip-synching, blurring genders as a hot muscle man dancing acrobatically in a skimpy leotard and thigh-high stilettos. His performances are full-on, seriously cool and evocative too. And his chatter in between numbers is charming.  

Meanwhile in the theatre space, CONTACT: STORIES OF DIVISION AND UNITY is a series of plays running through the summer exploring a range of buzzy topics like conversion therapy, social media shaming, first love and much more.

Stage: Life is but a dream

Pricked: Sleeping Beauty Got Woke
by Tim Benzie and Paul Joseph
dir Tim McArthur
musical director Aaron Clingham
with Lucy Penrose, Robert McNeilly, Grant Cartwright, Fia Houston-Hamilton, Charlie Wood
Royal Vauxhall Tavern • 4.Dec.20-7.Jan.21

The RVT's adult-oriented panto is always one of the funniest shows of the year, and this year's team has outdone itself. There isn't a dull moment in this blissfully silly musical-comedy extravaganza, as it spirals in surreal directions that leave the audience trying to stifle laughter under social distancing rules. And the show even has a trick for that.

Being the story of Sleeping Beauty, the script plays heavily on the idea that much of 2020 feels like a bad dream. Fairy Merryweather (Penrose) is our guide through the mayhem, although even she's not terribly sure what's going on as the gloriously evil Maleffluent (McNeilly) has cursed Princess Aurora (Cartwright) to fall into a deep sleep if she pricks her finger before her 18th birthday. Maleffluent is assisted by a jittery Raven (Wood), who intercepts the thrusting Prince (Houston-Hamilton) as he seeks to rescue Aurora from her castle-tower prison.

Characters break into song at the drop of a hat, with witty twists on iconic pop tracks as well as musical theatre numbers from vintage shows like The Sound of Music, Annie and The Wiz. There are even two hilarious songs lifted from last summer's Eurovision Song Contest comedy, including Ya Ya Ding Dong, which elicits a riotous bell-ringing number. Show-stoppers include the Raven singing a duet of I'm Like a Bird with a fed-up Prince, plus magnificent nods to Cheryl Cole and Queen. Throw in a bit of tap dancing, lots of references to both Covid and Brexit, rude jokes about Amanda Holden and Lorena Bibbity Bobbity Boo. Flashbacks and dream sequences escalate the sense that this show is utterly out of control, and indeed it goes full-meta at one point.

The performances are excellent across the board, with Houston-Hamilton emerging as the star of the show due to her rambunctious attitude and gifted timing with both comedy and music. McNeilly is also terrific as the astoundingly busty villain of the piece. And Wood has a lot of fun shrieking around the stage as the nervous Raven. Unsurprisingly, the show's lead character is the least colourful, but Cartwright gives it some oomph. The salient question is whether a sleeping princess can give consent to be kissed.

Cleverly, the production team has come up with ways for the audience to be involved, pressing buttons to trigger the call and response elements and teaching us various insinuating hand motions to interact with the characters. The staging is clever and lively, and it's such a fast and hilarious show that it's impossible to catch all the references. It even wraps everything up in a Mariah-hued bow.

photos by Chris Jepson • 5.Dec.20

NB. This show was forced to shut down just a few days into its run by another Covid lockdown. It was revamped and restaged a year later: REVIEWED HERE.

Stage: A twisted Christmas delight

Slipped: Cinderella ... Rebooted!
by Paul Joseph and Tim Benzie 
dir Tim McArthur
with Faye Reeves, Grant Cartwright, Robert McNeilly, Jim Lavender, Rich Watkins
Royal Vauxhall Tavern, London • 28.Nov.19-8.Jan.20

This was my first panto at Royal Vauxhall Tavern, and I knew it would be a twist on the formula. Indeed, it's a riotously rude, gender-bending romp featuring the usual tropes, including how it's chirpily addressed to an audience of "boys and girls" while everything is very adult indeed. With a terrific script and nimble direction, plus an engagingly up-for-it cast of cross-dressers, this is a fabulous blast of holiday spirit.

The fairy tale is well and truly fractured. Cinderella (Cartwright) is off to the ball thanks to help from his Fairy Godmother (Reeves), who has some anger issues. But his wicked stepmother Lady Garden (McNeilly) and evil stepsister Pleasure (Lavender) are also in attendance, hoping to catch the eye of the eligible Prince Charming (Watkins). The problem is that the prince ha s a shoe fetish, so he's more interested in that exquisite glass slipper than whoever was wearing it.

Where this goes is flat-out ridiculous, encompassing a series of amusing musical numbers. Classics like Tomorrow and Especially for You (or rather, Shoe) mingle with more recent hits like Juice, Señorita and You Need to Calm Down. Plus a seriously unforgettable rendition of Shallow. The script is littered with pop culture references as well as nods to news headlines that feel so up-to-the-moment that the show will be shifting along with the UK's election campaign. It will definitely be worth revisiting.

And the performers are relentless scene-stealers, trying to win the audience over with individual call-and-response catch-phrases while directly appealing for sympathy at every turn. Each has great stage presence, mercilessly lampooning themselves. Watkins' smirking Prince is sometimes unnervingly slimy, while Reeves and Lavender have a suitably appalling chemistry as the conniving, hairy-dopey baddies. As the heroine, Cartwright is appropriately bland but blossoms as things go on. And the show is well and truly stolen by Reeves, who skilfully channels Megan Mullally on speed as the Fairy Godmother, nailing the show's best gags. She also pops up in various witty side roles, and gets a chance to torment the audience directly (glitter alert!).

Director Tim McArthur takes a freewheeling approach that knowingly riffs on amateurish townhall-style productions. But these are talented professionals who never miss a beat, improvising jokes along with the script's funniest gags while trying to crack each other up. It's charming, hilarious and very rude. There are perhaps too many poo jokes (if that's possible), and the whole thing seems to be reluctant to come to an end. So it leaves us in just the right kind of Christmas mood.

For more info: www.vauxhalltavern.com