REVIEW | Beauty and the Beast, Lichfield Garrick Theatre
Written by Katie
Disclaimer: We were invited to watch this performance in return for an honest review.
Christmas has truly arrived with a bang at the Lichfield Garrick with this epic show, and this year they are treating us to their take on Beauty and The Beast.
This is the quintessential British Christmas. Cheesy puns, cheesy costumes, cheesy moves and plenty of adult humour to go over the kid’s heads.
The Garrick's legendary dame, Sam Rabone is back this year as Madame Bellie Fillop (Belle’s mother), and you can see why year after year audiences adore him. He oozes charisma in this role, flirting with audience members and easily pulling off the most garish and enormous costumes.
Sam forms the most brilliant comedy duo with Ben Thornton, who is back this year as Phillipe (Belle’s brother), knocking jokes out of the park left right and centre. There is no doubt that Ben is an absolute comedy genius in this role, performing with a charm and wit that had the audience (and me!) falling in love with him right from the phrase ‘once upon a time’. The banter between this pair is first class, and I have never seen commitment to a scene quite like that of the ice cream chaos that went on in Act 2!
I also particularly enjoyed the Disney comedy banter between these 2, which somehow managed to weave 35 Disney character puns into the storyline seamlessly.
Kat Chatterton and Melad Hamidi brought Belle and the Beast to life in a much more understated way, which I was grateful for to give the show a bit of grounding. Meanwhile, Natalie Pilkington comes right back in with a full force of energy as Cupid, and was the ideal storyteller, crossing over as an almost narrator role.
While this is a show that has definitely seen the Disney blockbuster, it is not afraid to go a bit rogue and off-piste.
Danton (Jacob Kohli) was an odd amalgamation of the Gaston and Le Fou characters from the classic story, which did get somewhat messy at times from a storyline perspective. Still, he won us over with excellent vocals and comedic timing.
In true panto fashion, the excuses to sing popular chart songs were charmingly feeble, segwaying us into the likes of ‘I’m just Ken’, ‘What's Wrong with Being Confident’ and ‘You Can’t Stop The Beat’, just to name a few. Although some song choices were a little low for the vocal range of some of the female soloists, on the whole the cast were excellent and did well to make them their own.
The ensemble are top quality, easily rivalling that of some of the West Mids biggest pantos, and with only 6 of them, they may be small, but they sure are mighty. Filling the stage with such energy and vigour, they brought a real magic particularly when transformed into the iconic enchanted servants, which this time also introduced a lampshade, a sugar bowl and a rather scantily clad statue.
And while I am getting slightly bored of the same old panto finale formula, it has to be said, there is nothing more magical as a child than being chosen to have your moment on stage with the cast- even if they do look like a deer in the headlights!
It’s a tale as old as time, panto has a big place in British hearts, and this one is up there with the best. A must see for families in and around Litchfield, Beauty and the Beast is on until Sunday 7th January 2024.
