Sodbury Players are Genie-us with a perfect panto (From Gazette Series)

Sodbury Players are Genie-us with a perfect panto

11:20am Thursday 19th January 2012 in What's On By Alexandra Womack

Review: Aladdin by Sodbury Players, Chipping Sodbury Town Hall

RIGHT then boys and girls, who needs something to cheer about on these wet and windy New Year nights? Well Sodbury Players has the perfect antidote to the January blues, oh yes they do, with an action-packed panto extravaganza.

The amateur group has outdone itself this year, by creating a wonderfully warm and funny show with all the gags and capers, goodies and baddies, dames and dancing you would expect from a good old pantomime.

And Aladdin was worth wait for those who snubbed the celebrities appearing at Bath and Bristol theatres before Christmas, in favour of packing into their local town hall and supporting their home-grown stage stars.

Katie Salt, appearing in her 15th show for Sodbury Players, and Sarah Dean, a third of local band The Dixie Bells and 3D, take the lead roles as Aladdin and Princess Jasmine with impressive vocal performances particularly in their touching duets.

Pete Williamson provides laughs aplenty as one of panto’s best-loved dames, Widow Twankey, but it is Julian Hinton, as Aladdin’s haphazard brother Wishee Washee who has the crowd in fits. His soap-swirling scene is hilarious, especially as it includes a good washing for one plucky audience volunteer, and JuJi, as Julian is known within the players, makes himself a firm favourite with kids and alike adult with his boundless energy, manic dashing to and from stage exits and even into the audience chasing five toilet rolls during a rousing rendition of the Twelve Days of Christmas.

Orion Abbot-Davies not only looks the part of the all-powerful Genie of the Lamp but also commands the stage with his almighty voice and adds a lot of humour to the role, clearly taking inspiration from Robin Williams in the Disney film and not coming up short.

Michaela Sydney also adds a certain Dudley charm as the Slave of the Ring and Lin Bowden and Ross Arnott are everything panto policemen should be as the comedic Chinese coppers Pep-Si and Ko-La.

In his directorial debut, Grant McCotter also makes a very convincing baddie as the evil Abanazer entering into plenty of banter with the booing crowd.

The production behind this 2012 family show is equally superb with an array of dazzling costume and scenery changes, a hidden cave and of course a flying carpet. The live band, under the musical directorship of Charlie Dean, provide panache to what is already a brilliant addition to the Players’ repertoire of shows and prove that you don’t need a TV star or a big budget to make a truly great British pantomime.

Aladdin is on at Chipping Sodbury Town Hall until Saturday, January 21.